Corn Soup

I have a hankering for a Corn Chowder! I haven't made one of these for a very long time and with winter just around the corner this would put a smile on my face and fire in my belly.

Sweet Corn is such a versatile vegetable, not only in the way it can be prepared to eat but its other uses. Did you know that toothpaste, rubber products, paint, varnish and cosmetics are just a few of the items made from corn? Amazing to think of this widely grown and eaten vegetable can do so much.
Can you think of any other product that you use on a regular basis that is also made from corn?

But I am talking food so let's get back into this fabulous Corn Soup or Corn Chowder. This soup originated in USA as a Clam Chowder and Corn Soup is often served as a vegetarian alternative.
But whatever the origin, this Corn Chowder is pretty damn good and I like to think of many Americans sitting down during Thanksgiving and dipping a chunk of bread into the very same.

My fancy - a bowl of steaming soup, some crunchy bread and a glass of wine! A perfect end to a perfect winter's day.

Corn Soup or Corn Chowder

Ingredients   serves 6 people

2 sticks celery very finely sliced
small onion very finely diced
2 medium sized potatoes, diced
500 ml reduced fat milk
500 ml cup vegetable stock or water
fresh thyme
salt and pepper
1 400g can creamed corn
2 cobs of corn with corn removed or a packet of frozen corn
knob of butter
1 tbls olive oil
2 tbls chives finely chopped
1/2 cup extra tasty cheese

• Take olive oil and butter  and add to a large pot and under a low heat. Stir in onion and celery and cook for a few minutes until the onion softens. 

• Now add potato and cook for a further 2 minutes coating the potato with oil and butter. 

• Mix milk and stock/ water together with fresh thyme,  creamed corn, salt and pepper and cook for 15 minutes or until the potato is almost cooked. 

• Take fresh or frozen corn and add this to the pot and continue to cook until the corn is soft. 

• Check consistency. If the soup is too thick you can dilute with a little more milk.

• Before serving, place some of the extra tasty cheese into the bottom of each bowl then fill with hot soup. Sprinkle with freshly chopped chives.

• This soup is delicious served with with Cheese and Herb Scones, Bagels or fresh crusty bread.

I haven't posted a recipe for my scones yet, but I will try and do this later in the week, because I have been asked to include it.  Check back soon.

Orange, Pumpkin, Coconut Soup with Chilli

When winter comes, so do oranges and mandarins and I get excited all over again to discover more ways to use these beautiful fruits.

My healthy eating plan kicks in this week,  so don't expect cake recipes or delicious desserts for a little while. As I watch the temperature plummet and winter creep up faster than expected I hear my friends calling out for food that's quick and easy to prepare, will warm you from head to toe and has a flavour that will see you all yelling 'give me more'

I'm giving you a fast soup - Orange, Pumpkin, Coconut Soup with Chilli  and with a lot of flavour.

Get cracking in the kitchen, there is no time to sit on the couch wrapped in a furry blanket. Because winter is also a time to take some beautiful walks in the fog, prepare your vegetable patch ready for spring, plant some striking bulbs that will surprise you in spring and make a start on that new hobby you have been promising yourself.

Winter - savour it!

ORANGE, PUMPKIN AND COCONUT SOUP - with a Hint of Chilli

Ingredients

1 onion chopped

2 medium potatoes peeled and diced

600g peeled and diced pumpkin 

400ml coconut milk

1/2 cup stock or water

1 tbls olive oil

1 knob of butter

1 small red chilli seeded but left whole

salt and pepper

juice of 1 - 2  oranges

fresh chives

In a large pot add olive oil, know of butter and sweat the onions until soft. 

Add pumpkin and potato and cook for 5 minutes.

Add coconut milk, stock, salt, pepper and the whole chilli.

Cook partly covered on a very low heat until pumpkin and potato is cooked.

Add juice of one orange. Turn off the heat and allow to cool. Remove the chilli and discard.

Blend soup using a hand held or bench blender until smooth and silky. Taste and add extra orange juice if required.

Serve with a sprinkling of fresh chives.

Clear Vegetable Broth with Soba Noodles and Chilli Tofu

After two weeks of utter stinking hot temperatures and raging bush fires, the weather plunged into the depths of what can only be described as an autumnal week. Rain, fog and high winds.

Native animals have faced the devastation of their environment and food sources with local fires and now they are threatened with flood waters. What ever next? Eucalyptus trees are losing their bark at an alarming rates shredding into strips as the wind picks it up and hurtles it into the streets and on to neighbouring roof tops.

Although there is some compensation; the vegetable patch is enjoying the rain, we might actually get some tomatoes this year now and just yesterday I noticed that the beetroot was showing signs of recovery.

This had led me into thinking that it might be a gentle soup kind of day. Unable to get out and finish the weeding, I decided the pantry needed its annual clean out and right at the back I found two packets of Soba Noodles.

I had planned on making a Green Tofu Curry and had bought Tofu already, but it was time for something a little different.

This soup can be made in stages and when you have a little time in the kitchen you could make the broth/soup a day or couple of days before putting it all together. It makes enough for 4 or 6 people, is easy to adapt for more  or less people and any left over stock can be kept in the freezer for another day.

As you can see I don't worry about getting all the tofu the same size. I just dice it up quickly and throw it in the wok. It all tastes the same anyway.

Clear Vegetable Broth with Soba Noodle and Chilli Tofu 

For 4 people you will need:

Broth

Soba noodles

oil

4 cups of water

1 large carrot, very finely sliced

1 onion, very finely sliced

2 garlic cloves, very finely diced

2 sticks of celery, finely sliced

Salt and pepper

3 spring onions very finely sliced

1 small leek, very finely sliced

Soy Sauce - I use Tamari

a few handfuls of Kale, very finely sliced

1 small tin bamboo shoots

1 lime or lemon

A small bunch of parsley, fresh thyme and bay leaves, tied together with string

Tofu

oil

350g Firm Tofu

pinch chilli flakes

salt and pepper

zest of a lemon or lime

There are two ways to cook the tofu. Either baked in the oven or in a wok. I prefer to use the wok but it does mean that you need to use a little more oil. I think the tofu is crispier when it is cooked in the wok. However, it is your choice. The preparation is the same.

Take the firm tofu and dry it with paper towel. Cut it into cubes and sprinkle liberally with salt, chilli flakes and the zest of the lime or lemon. Using your hands gently rub the marinade into the tofu and set aside for about one hour.

To make the broth, heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large pan and on a very low heat cook the garlic and onion until the edge start to turn brown. This will take about 8 minutes. Add celery, carrot and leek and mix this around for a few minutes until they start to caramelise. Then add 4 cups of water, salt and pepper and the herb bundle.

Bring to the boil, lower the heat to a very low simmer and cook for approximately 45 minutes to 1 hour. Cool. Strain out the vegetables, retaining about half of the carrots.

If you wish to bake the tofu,  place on a baking tray, spray with oil and place in a hot oven 190 - 200 degrees/ 350 - 400 until it starts to brown. Turn over and continue to bake. This will all take around 30 - 40 minutes. Or if you have decided to fry using a wok, add oil and cook in batches until brown and crunchy.

Boil a large pan of water, add a pinch of salt and add the soba noodles. Bring back to the boil then simmer for  around 15 minutes , but check the label for cooking times. While these are cooking, heat up your broth, adding the bamboo shoots.

To assemble;

Once the noodles are cooked, add a small quantity to each serving bowl. Divide the tofu equally into each bowl. Divide the kale between bowls and then using a ladle, add broth to each bowl. Squeeze with lime or lemon juice, a teaspoon of soy sauce and a sprinkling of spring onions. Serve.

You may wish to adjust the seasonings with additional salt and adding a wedge of lime or lemon.

This is so heartwarming, low calorie, high protein and so full of goodness it will put a rosy glow on your cheeks and a smile on your face.

The Humble Cabbage

Here is another stinker! Cabbage! It's had a slip in popularity lately. Many people have decided to use Cavalo Nero and Kale and are slipping these into their blenders to make smoothies. Now that is something I can't quite fathom. And you must have noticed that in many films and TV programs when there is a block of flat/units there is always some reference to the stench of boiled cabbage. So cabbage has got a really bad name of late.

It is sad because cabbage is so underestimated! There are many ways to use cabbage and different varieties, each of them needing a different treatment ; Red Cabbage, Savoy Cabbage, Chinese Cabbage, plain smooth leaf white cabbage and not forgetting Spring Greens. (Do we have spring greens in Australia?)

And there are much better ways to treat a cabbage other than boiling it to death? So if you have experienced eating what began as a handsome, crisp green cabbage dished up into a pale, limp, lifeless mess or finely chopped and smothered in insipid mayonnaise, then I suppose you can't be blamed for hating it.

Looking at any 'old masters' paintings of still life - you will often see a cabbage in full display alongside the rabbit, apples and pewter goblet of wine, because it was a prized possession, something to be adored. I have read in some medieval recipes that cabbage should be cooked for many hours in a big pot on the fire with leeks, onions and lots of herbs.  But I think cabbage needs to be cooked for a short time with a few other ingredients to retain its flavour and colour.

My favourite cabbage is blanched for a few minutes in boiling water, or steamed,  drained, put back in a saucepan with a knob of butter and some freshly grated nutmeg. OK, so this is a great veg to eat in winter and you can serve it with just about anything and to be honest, it is a cheap vegetable. One whole cabbage can feed 6 - 8 people or more.


So let me help you renew your love of cabbage! A simple recipe or two will surely bring back the love and we all need a little more of that in our lives. Here is a great soup, fast and easy to cook and being budget conscious, you know it will be a cheap eat - but not a cheap flavour.

Keeping in mind that I am still trying to give you food that is really value for money, food that tastes good, is good for you, then I am sure you will enjoy this Cabbage Soup. I am making cabbage rolls later in the week so I will post you that recipe in the next couple of days.

Cabbage Soup

Don't be fooled by these basic ingredients. This is a very tasty and filling soup.

Ingredients

1/2  Savoy cabbage, roughly chopped (the one with wrinkly leaves)

1 tbls olive oil

2 stalks celery chopped

2 carrots finely chopped

1 onion finely chopped

2 cloves garlic minced

1/2 leek finely chopped

1/2 sweet potato chopped

1 400g tin crushed tomatoes

salt and pepper to taste

bunch of herbs; oregano, parsley, thyme or whatever you have chopped

1 litre vegetable stock

Grated parmesan (optional)

Few herbs to garnish

Heat olive oil in large pot and add onion. Cook until soft then add garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Add celery, carrots, leek, sweet potato and allow to sweat for 5 minutes or so. Keep stirring and when the carrot is almost done add the cabbage, herbs, stock, tomatoes, salt and pepper to taste. Cook for approximately 30 minutes until all the vegetables are soft but not falling apart. Check seasoning.

Serve piping hot in a bowl with chopped herbs for garnish and some grated parmesan if desired.

Serves 6 and cost calculated to $1.25 per person.

Chick Peas - Spicy Soup and Hummus

I have a confession to make - I love chickpeas! I love spicy food! Would you have ever guessed this? Apart from their protein value Chick Peas are high in fibre, iron, folate, phosphorus, low GI and they are very, very versatile.

A couple of weeks ago I posted my fav Chick Pea Soup recipe, but with the winter chills continuing I really wanted some more warming soup. Also to make it even better, my local supermarket was selling tins of my favourite brand of chick peas brand for only $1 per tin, so I stocked up and just couldn't resist making this.

I have a really fast recipe for making Hummus too, so while my husband made me a some toast the other morning I whipped up a batch of hummus. It took me the same time to make it as the toast took to be made and buttered.  So today I am treating you to two recipes - Spicy Lentil Soup with Chickpeas and Fast Hummus. I suppose the best way to enjoy these would be to make some toast, slather it with Hummus and dip it in to the hot soup - Ok even I may find that too weird. Enjoy!

Spicy Lentil Soup with Chickpeas 

Ingredients
3 cloves garlic
1 tin of cooked chickpeas 400g net weight (Annalisa is my favourite brand)
fresh ginger 2.5 cms coarsely grated
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
1 fresh red chilli finely chopped
pinch saffron soaked in 3 tbls boiling water
1 cup red/orange lentils
400g tin crushed tomatoes
1 litre of vegetable stock or use water and stock cube
1/2 cup chopped coriander
1/2 cup chopped parsley
1 tbl olive oil
1 onion finely chopped
pinch salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a large saucepan, heat oil over low heat and add onion, cook stirring for about 5 minutes. Add garlic, chilli, coriander, cumin. Add saffron and water, lentils, tomatoes and stock. 
Cover and simmer for 30 minutes.
Add chick peas, salt and pepper and simmer for another 5-10 minutes. 
Stir in fresh coriander and parsley. Serve immediately.

There is no need to add anything else to this dish, it is perfect by itself. A piece of sour dough bread for dunking is optional.

Fast Hummus

I have made this Hummus many, many times. It will turn out well each time, but you have to adjust it to suit yourself. Maybe you prefer a little more lemon in yours or less garlic. This is up to you to perfect it to your personal taste. This is a good place to start.

1 tin cooked chick peas 440g net weight
2 large tbls tahini
2 cloves garlic
4 tbls lemon juice
3 tbls olive oil
salt and pepper
sweet paprika

Place all of these ingredients except  1 tablespoon of oil, salt and pepper and paprika in a food processor. Blitz until all the ingredients are well combined. I like to have mine with a little texture, but if you prefer it to be smooth then keep processing until you reach the consistency that you like.
Spoon out into a dish, add salt and pepper.
Drizzle the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil over the top and add a good pinch of paprika. Serve.

This should keep in the fridge for a couple of weeks, but I only ever manage to keep it a few days!

Tomato Soup with Vodka

My Mother would often say that if something was good for you to eat then "it would put hairs on your chest". As a female, this was not a particularly encouraging thing. But I realised that was just what my grandmother would have said to her own children - a family of 5 boys and 2 girls, so it was probably more appropriate! And I knew by the saying that whatever was being served was hearty and warming and usually delicious.

So, this soup will "put hairs on your chest"! But not literally. Full of flavour, even with winter tomatoes; and  the slug of vodka will warm you down to your toes. Great for sharing with friends on a cold winter's night or as a treat for yourself while reading a book by the fire. Either way you will want more than one bowl - but be careful because it is addictive!

This is an easy recipe, quick to make and you can make it without the Vodka. But why would you!

Tomato Soup with Vodka

Ingredients

1kg ripe tomatoes

4 cloves garlic

3 cups vegetable stock
2tbls tomato paste

3 tbls olive oil
1 tbls horseradish sauce/cream
2 tbls Worcestershire sauce
3 tbls Vodka
pinch salt
black pepper to taste
3 sprigs thyme and rosemary

• Heat oven to 160c fan forced.
• Take a large baking tray and line with baking paper. 
• Cut tomatoes in half, spread in one layer in baking tray. Add 3 cloves of garlic and sprinkle with olive oil. Add crushed thyme and rosemary and bake tomatoes for 40 minutes until they are soft and nicely browned on the top.
• Place the garlic, tomatoes, vegetable stock, horseradish cream, worcestershire sauce, tomato paste, salt and pepper in a blender or blitz together with a hand held blender.
• Place combined tomatoes in a saucepan and heat gently, just before serving add the vodka.
• Serve with Worcestershire Sauce and Tabasco Sauce on the side.

Serves 4

Cold Weather Comfort

I was first introduced to this soup over 20 years ago by my friend Terri, when we began to experiment more with beans and pulses. I was pretty excited about the flavour even then and put it in my 'favourites' bag. I hadn't visited that bag for a long time but returning to a wintery Adelaide from Europe last week gave me a very good reason to check it out. Besides, I spent so much money that it is time to be a little more budget conscious. (The chick peas cost me $4.20, so this is very economical to make).

Chick peas are very good value in terms of nutrition and price. They have a lovely nutty flavour, high in fibre, protein and the trace mineral Manganese. And of course they are the low GI. Chick peas are used in many middle eastern dishes, Tajines, stews, hummus, falafel and a variety of curries. You can buy chick peas dried or tinned and I often used tinned when I am in a hurry to cook something, but I do prefer, when possible to used dried ones. If you are cooking for a large crowd then buying dried chick peas is much more economical, even though you need to add the extra soaking time.

For this recipe, use dried chick peas.

CHICKPEA AND ROSEMARY SOUP

Ingredients

800g dried chick peas soaked in water overnight
1 brown onion chopped
2 large cloves garlic
3 tbls olive oil
1 or 2 large sprigs of fresh rosemary chopped
pinch rock salt
freshly ground black pepper

• Soak the chick peas in cold water, enough to cover by about 5cms, and soak overnight. Wash the chick peas and discard the water.
• Take a large saucepan, add chick peas a good pinch rock salt, 1 tablespoon of olive oil and cover with cold water.
• Bring chick peas to the boil and simmer until cooked. Around 30  mins.
• In a fry pan add 2 tablespoons of olive oil, roughly chopped onion, rosemary and chopped garlic and cook until the onion is beginning to brown.
• Drain chick peas, retaining the liquid for stock. Add chick peas to frypan and cook stirring occasionally, for approximately 15 minutes. This will get that nice rosemary flavour to the chickpeas. Slowly add a little stock, and get all those nice crunchy bits from the bottom of the pan.
• Put the chick pea mixture into a large bowl and blitz with a hand blender or put into a blender, adding the retained liquid a little at a time until you reach the consistency that you like. I prefer it to be thick,chunky and hot! Check seasoning, add extra salt and some black pepper to taste.
• If you prefer a thinner soup, just add extra stock. 

Reheat and serve with some yummy bread!

Serves 6 

The Mean Green Cucumber

It is time to turn my attention to getting my body back into better shape. Is this possible she asks herself, taking into account age and current state of the body?
I have read that it is never too late to improve strength and reduce BMI, but I need to take everything into consideration including, motivation, courage and limitations due to injuries sustained dancing and playing sport in earlier years.
My weekly exercise program is 1.5 hrs of Pilates, 30 minutes Aerobic Dance Class and 1 or 2 Weight Classes per week and I am trying to walk on days when I am not at the gym. I'm willing to try a personal training session every month to keep me on track.  I have allowed myself 12 months to achieve this. If you hear the grunts and the groans along the way stay with me, it's only my way of attracting attention!!

Continuing with two fasts per week, (that is only consuming up to 500 calories on two days per week) I am eating normally on the other 5 days. Dropping back alcoholic drinks to weekends only and special occasions and reviewing food portion sizes, I can still eat fantastic food.  I will NOT stop eating the food I love, but I will be re-testing recipes to find healthier options and hoping eating smaller portions will do the trick. Cream and chocolate will appear less, but will still be included because there is a definite place for both in my life.

One of my friends has thrown me a cucumber challenge this week. It seems she has a trillion growing in her garden and needs help to use them in an interesting and yummy way. I really like cucumbers, hot day, cold, crunchy mouth watering cucumbers and so low calorie. The first few eaten straight from the fridge would be great but then I suppose the novelty would wear off. So I am posting a few recipes for you all to try. I hope you like them. The bonus is they are all healthy and low in calories, so no excuses!

Creamy Cucumber and Avocado Soup

I am starting with this one because you can serve it warm or cold, depending on your weather conditions. So if you are in the Northern Hemisphere and a cold soup doesn't appeal, try it warm!

I must admit this is one of my favourite recipes because it is so creamy and has a little zing to it. Don't shrug it off because it is made from cucumbers, you may be very, very surprised.

Ingredients

4 Cups peeled, deseeded cucumbers

2 Cloves garlic

1 Small onion diced finely

1 tbls Olive Oil

1 Ripe avocado peeled and diced

Pinch salt

1/4 tsp Cayenne pepper 

1 tbls Lemon juice

Few sprigs mint chopped

11/2 cups vegetable stock

1/2 cup Plain yoghurt

1/4 cup Parsley, chopped

Place oil in a large frypan with garlic and cook until soft but not brown, 10 minutes. Add lemon juice and cook for a few seconds before you add cucumber (save a few fine rounds for garnishing), stock, cayenne pepper, mint. Cook on low heat until cucumber is soft, this takes about 10 - 1 minutes. Parsley and avocado should be added now with a small pinch salt.

Using a stick blender, a blender or a food processor, puree until you are happy with the consistency.

If you are going to eat this immediately add the yoghurt and parsley and stir this in. If you are eating it cold then cover and place in the fridge until you are ready to serve.

If you want to save this and reheat it later in the day, don't add the yoghurt now but wait until you have reheated it and then stir in the yoghurt just before serving. To serve, garnish with a round of cucumber and a mint leaf. Grab a bagel, slice it into 4 rounds and lightly toast. If you have 1 slice with a small bowl of soup it is approx 219 calories. Brilliant!