taste2taste

November 16, 2015

Broccoli Soup – Perfect for the Change in Season

Thanks to my co blogger for a great time in New York. It was unseasonably warm & sunny there with the trees just starting to shed their leaves. I was lucky to experience great hospitality and the amazing colours of Autumn/Fall. Now back in the UK and still slightly warmer than average I wanted to make something easy and perfect for the change of season – my broccoli soup.

Ingredients (serves 6-8)

broccoli cut into florets

500g (1.1lb) broccoli- florets and stalks
1 large stick celery and celery leaves finely chopped
1 large onion finely chopped
575ml (2 1/2 cups) vegetable stock
275ml (1 1/4 cups) semi skimmed milk
30g (1 oz) butter
2 dried bay leaves
1 teaspoon salt
20 grinds black pepper
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
Veggies chopped
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
150 ml (2/3 cup) creme fraiche
fresh chives finely chopped to garnish

Method

Rinse the broccoli and cut into florets
Trim the stalks and chop into 1 cm(0.4 inch) chunks
Put stalks into a large pan of boiling water & simmer for 3 minutes
Add broccoli florets and continue to simmer for another 3 minutes
Cooked & ready to blitz
Drain both and rinse under cold water
Melt the butter in a large pan and sauté the celery, onion, coriander, allspice, nutmeg and bay leaves for about 5 minutes on a medium heat until soft
Add the broccoli florets and stalks and sauté for 2 minutes on a medium/high heat
Broccoli & vegetables blitzed & ready to be soup

Remove & discard the bay leaves, transfer the broccoli & vegetable mix into a large bowl & blitz to a puree using a stick blender adding a little veg stock (picture, left)
Transfer puree back into the pan and add rest of the veg stock, milk, salt and black pepper.
Simmer for 6 minutes on a low/medium heat
Remove from heat and stir in creme fraiche
Check seasoning, add more salt & pepper if needed and serve with chopped chives and crusty bread

This soup tastes great the next day, keep in the fridge and also freezes well. Warm, tasty and perfect for the change in season – my broccoli soup.

November 13, 2015

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Chicken Soup – The Best Cure for the Common Cold!

Well readers, my co-blogger has left town and the writer has caught the cold that she imported from London. Thanks a bunch Lindsey!

Anyway, that does give me an excuse to cook the best cure for both the common cold and the late Autumnal blues – Eastern European style Jewish Chicken Soup. It is one of my family’s favorite seasonal broths, rich fragrant and a meal in a bowl, especially when served with the chicken and vegetables it was made with and a few delicious thread egg noodles and Matzoh Balls (a sort of Jewish dumpling)!

Even better, it really isn’t that hard to make and you can also freeze the soup or use it as a stock for other recipes if you like. It truly is a brilliant self recycling soup

Some of the Ingredients you’ll need

Ingredients (serves 4-6)

1 whole chicken (cut into 8)
One whole medium onion (peeled only)
2 peeled carrots (sliced horizontally in 2)
2 sticks of celery (sliced horizontally in 2)
1 turnip / purple top (peeled and chopped into 1″ squares
A small handful of parsley (whole)
1 pint of chicken stock
2 bay leaves
Salt and pepper

In the pot before and after cooking

Method

Rinse the chicken once with boiling water
Add the chicken and all the other ingredients to a large stock pot, pouring the chicken stock in last
Season with a good few pinches of salt and fresh ground black pepper
Then add sufficient boiling water to cover all the ingredients by a few inches
Bring the content of the pot to the boil
Reduce the heat to a simmer and cover the pot and cook for 2 hours
Dispose of the bay leaves, remove the chicken and vegetables from the broth and set aside
Soup de-constructed
Strain the remaining liquid through a sieve to remove any bits and pour the liquid into a large bowl to cool, place in a refrigerator
After a few hours, skim the chicken fat formed on the surface of the soup
Re heat the soup (and the chicken and vegetables you set aside)

Serve piping hot in a deep bowl with Matzoh balls and some thread egg noodles. Cold fixed, blues cured, or is it the other way round?

November 12, 2015

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Strawberry Shortcake- a sweet treat!

Happy Diwali, here’s an alternative to traditional sweetmeats and snacks for a sweet year

taste2taste

The weather in London is finally back to typical summer as it has been raining all day & due to continue all night. It is still summer and nothing better than a treat that is easy to make and naughty but nice to eat! I was feeling creative and came up with a modern take on a classic: spelt shortbread with crushed cardamon, lemon & a pinch of sumac. Traditional shortbread either bought or home made work just as well and more classic. I do have my quirky moments -cardamon & sumac in shortbread are you kidding? Trust me it does work, as long as you like cardamon & sumac!

Ingredients