Soups On!

The cooler, damp weather makes some of us want to insulate by wrapping ourselves in a cocoon. What better way to keep warm than with a big bowl of hot soup? Pumpkins are currently so abundant and good for you too. Here is an oldie but a goodie from Simply Recipes to try out. The spiciness of curry will keep you nice and warm:

Ingredients

• 4 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 2 medium yellow onions, chopped
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 2 teaspoons curry powder (adjust to your taste)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• Pinch ground cayenne pepper (optional)
• 3 (15 oz) cans 100 percent pumpkin or 6 cups of chopped roasted pumpkin*
• 5 cups of chicken broth (or vegetable broth for vegetarian option)**
• 2 cups of milk
• 1/2 cup brown sugar (optional or use less)
• 1/2 cup heavy cream (optional or use less)

*To make pumpkin purée, cut a sugar pumpkin in half, scoop out the seeds and stringy stuff, lie face down on a tin-foil lined baking pan. Bake at 350°F until soft, about 45 min to an hour. Cool, scoop out the flesh. Freeze whatever you don't use for future use.
**If cooking gluten-free, use gluten-free broth.

Method

1 Melt butter in a 4-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 4 minutes. Add spices and stir for a minute more.
2 Add pumpkin and 5 cups of chicken broth; blend well. Bring to a boil and reduce heat, simmer for 10 to 15 minutes.
3 Transfer soup, in batches, to a blender or food processor. Cover tightly and blend until smooth. Return soup to saucepan.
4 With the soup on low heat, add brown sugar and mix. Slowly add milk while stirring to incorporate. Add cream. Adjust seasonings to taste. If a little too spicy, add more cream to cool it down. You might want to add a teaspoon of salt.
Serve in individual bowls. Sprinkle the top of each with toasted pumpkin seeds.

Serves 8.

Happy Cocooning!
 

Minestrone Soup

I had a craving for hearty, soothing, stick to your ribs kind of soup. I saw this recipe for Minestrone soup in Vegetarian Times and it sounded heavenly. I love the addition of sun-dried tomatoes. They make anything better in my book and give things a wee kick in the pants. This soup is a hands down winner and is gluten and dairy free, although I have to admit that a little grated Parmesan would go nicely on top.

It's Time for Soup!

It has been a non-stop month long feeding frenzy! I have enjoyed all the noshing but I think I've hit a wall. Between multiple Christmas dinners with family, visiting with friends, bonbons and baked goods that seem to be appearing from everywhere, I have been in constant eating mode. I know how sharks feel where they are just swimming and eating in constant motion.

Tonight I decided to give my overworked jaw a break. It is snowing like crazy and everything is calling out for a bowl of soup. No sides, no dessert, just something soothing and nourishing that I don't have to chew.

I made this Green Pea and White Bean Soup from Chatelaine magazine and it fit the bill perfectly: a pretty colour, soothing and super easy to make. I will chew again tomorrow. For now I will put my feet up and sip.

Tasty Thai Soup

I am happy to be back home in my own cozy bed after a long tour of show duty. It was great being in L.A. and Vancouver, I met some delightful people, the shows were a lot of fun but I am pooped! I think I am also coming off an extended sugar high. My daily diet mainly consisted of cookies and chocolate, standard show fare, but I am starting to realize that a girl can't live on cookies alone. As I noshed on sweets in my booth I started to dream of green veggies, hearty soups, and platters of real food that would be chock full of nutrition.

As a result I am beyond excited to be eating a pail of this heavenly Thai soup I found here. It was easy to make and has all the spicy goodness I was dreaming of when I was in my sugar haze. Soothing soupy paradise!

Easy Thai Soup:

In a soup pot heat 1 tbsp oil, add 1 chopped onion, 1 clove of minced garlic, and stir till it is soft. Midway add 1 tsp chopped ginger and stir some more. Add 1-3 tsp red curry paste (I added 3 tsp and lordy! it was hot, maybe tone it down a bit with 2 tsp). Add 3 1/2 cups vegetable broth, half a can of coconut milk, 2 tsp brown sugar, 1 tsp turmeric, and 1 tbsp soy sauce.

Bring it to a boil and add some chopped veggies. I had carrots, celery and broccoli but you can use whatever you have. You can also add tofu or noodles if you want to make the soup heartier.

Let it simmer until the vegetables are soft, then stir in the juice of a lime.

It was so yummy and delicious. Just what the doctor ordered for a gal who has been overdosing on sugar!

A Good Soup Day

It has been a blustery and wet weekend. After being spoiled by near summer-like weather, it feels like a bit of a mean contrast. There was no easy transition into fall, it is full on grey and nasty. Oh well, if you can't beat it embrace it. If it is cold and dreary outside the best thing to do is get warm and cozy inside. With that in mind I put on woolly socks, looked at knitting projects and put on a pot of soup. Split pea soup seemed like the perfect choice. It is a stick to your ribs kind of soup, the kind that feels hearty and soothing and the perfect foil for a chilly evening. Suddenly a blustery, wet weekend feels just right.

I used this recipe from my fave go-to soup goddess, Deborah Madison. It is from her bookVegetable Soups From Deborah Madison's Kitchen:

Cream of Split Pea and Fresh Pea Soup

• Soak 1 cup green split peas for at least 1 hour.
• Heat 3 tbsp olive oil in a soup pot and cook 1 large diced onion, 2 diced carrots, 1 diced celery stalk, 1 tbsp chopped rosemary, 2 tbsp chopped parsley and 2 bay leaves for around 15 minutes. Add 2 chopped garlic cloves, 11/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp smoked paprika and cook for a few more minutes.
• Add the soaked split peas and 6 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat, cover and simmer for about an hour until the peas have broken down.
• Add 2 cups frozen peas and cook for another couple of minutes.
• Puree the soup with 1 cup of milk (she calls for half and half or light cream but I find milk is fine).
• Add some fresh chopped rosemary, the zest and juice of 1 lemon (which brightens everything and makes it so fresh and heavenly) and more salt and pepper if needed.

She suggests topping it with homemade croutons fried with a little butter, rosemary and an extra squeeze of lemon which would be delightful I'm sure. I opted for thick slices of hot buttery toast which fit the bill just fine, thank you very much. I put up my woolly socked feet, listened to the wind and felt perfectly warm and fortified.

Bright Soup for a Grey Day

It is raining again. These grey days are relentless and I am noticing that I am feeling sluggish rather than skipping merrily along as I usually do in springtime. I am hoping that the sun will arrive soon, but in the meantime, I decided I would make some bright yellow pea soup. The recipe is from Vegetable Soups from Deborah Madison's Kitchen and it is divine. It tastes exotic and rich and entirely soothing all at once. It's almost like sunshine in a bowl. It is one of my favourite winter soups, but I think it will be just as fitting on a rainy spring day.

It calls for spinach thrown in at the end, but I am wary after a bad experience when I added spinach to a bean soup and the whole thing was really weird and slimy.

Yellow Pea and Coconut Milk Soup:

Soak 2 cups yellow split peas for at least an hour, then bring them to a boil in a pot with 8 cups of water, a couple of bay leaves, 3 cloves (I didn't have whole cloves so I just added a little powdered clove) and 1 1/2 tsp salt. Simmer and let the peas cook partially covered.

Melt 2 tbsp butter in a pan and add 1 finely chopped onion and 1/4 cup minced cilantro stems. Cook for around 10 minutes, then add 1 1/2 tsp tumeric, 1 tsp cardomon (if you have it, I didn't), 1/2 tsp cinnamon and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Add 1/2 cup of water from the simmering peas and cook until the water is gone.

Add the onion mixture to the peas and continue to cook for about one hour until everything is nice and soft.

Remove the bay leaves and puree, then stir in a can of coconut milk and the juice of a lime.

This is where I end it, but she also suggests adding cooked rice to each bowl, along with the dreaded cooked spinach ( Danger! Potential slime alert!) and then topped with yogurt spiced with a bit of tumeric, paprika, cumin and pepper.

It may seem as though it's time intensive, but it actually isn't that fussy and is well worth it.