Broccoli soup

BROCCOLI SOUP with BASIL CREAM

I have been on a green theme lately, avocado, pesto, swiss chard…. it wasn’t conscious I tell you. I take inspiration as it comes. This time it was from the general direction of the fridge, where two broccoli’s & half of a cauliflower were staring me down. Add to that my lack of inspiration for dinner (happens to the best of us right), plus a lonely bouquet of basil and this soup was taking shape.

I have always felt that cream of broccoli soup was missing something, that it needed a little pick me up to tweak the taste buds. Here’s where the basil cream came in. It is not overpowering, in fact you may need a few spoonfuls to put your finger on just what makes this sumptuous soup so much better than the rest.

RECIPE : SWEET PEA Blog

• 350 gr broccoli florets
• 130 gr cauliflower
• 1 medium white onion
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 garlic clove
• 100 mL warm water
• 400 mL chicken stock
• 300 mL boiling water
• 1 bunch of basil
• 100 mL light cream
• salt & pepper

1. Wash & cut the broccoli & cauliflower into florets, set aside
2. prepare the onion: coarsly chop, heat the oil on medium heat, cook onions until soft (approx. 5 mins)
3. Add 100 mL of warm water, salt & pepper, cook covered until almost all the liquid has evaporated
4. Add crushed garlic, stir
5. Add broccoli, cauliflower, chicken stock & boiling water. Cover and cook until vegetables are cooked (broccoli easily pierced with a knife, but still bright green)
6. Drain and keep the stock.
7. In a blender, mix the cream & basil. Set aside.
8. In the blender mix vegetables, and gradually add the stock.
9. Finally add the bail cream to the soup.

Pesto

PESTO : This will be the shortest post known to man! Ok well not quite, but I was about to post the recipe for an avocado, goats cheese & quinoa salad when it occurred to me that it might be useful to have the Basil Pesto recipe first, as it is one of the main ingredients.

This recipe can be easily adapted to different tastes – more or less garlic, with or without parmesan and I add a dash of lemon juice to help keep the bright green colour, as the outer layer seems to oxidize so quickly!

Marisa told me,that when she was a little girl living in Italy, she was given the odious job of having to chop the basil by hand, into a fine paste using only a knife… authentic yes, time efficient no. So I have opted for using the blender and while less romantic it does get the job done.

RECIPE : ERIKA ALLISTON – Sweet Pea Food Blog

• 50 gr fresh basil leaves
• 1 large garlic clove
• 120 ml olive oil
• 25 gr grated parmesan
• 20 gr pine nuts
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
• salt & pepper to taste

1. To the blender add 1/2 the olive oil, the basil leaves & crushed garlic. Pulse until the leaves are chopped (see picture above).
2. Add the rest of the olive oil, parmesan, pine nuts, lemon juice salt & pepper. Pulse again, then change to blend, until well mixed.

The DUTCH Series N°4

In the past I generally thought of salad as a summer dish, made with a variety of fresh leafy greens picked from the garden. However, I have since developed a taste for the less celebrated but very tastey winter salad varieties. They are

• generally made with raw (often root)  vegetables  =  good for your health
• inexpensive
• quick & easy to make
• & delicious additions to the limited, winter vegetables repetoir!

Though I think it is safe to say that in terms of winter veggies, celeriac (celery root) is the ugly duckling. As when browsing through the market the last thing to entice your eyes is this nobly, pale yellow-green, root vegetable. Which is a shame really, as despite its appearance the taste is wonderful, more subtle then stalk celery & with a slightly nutty flavour.

As my grated raw beetroot salad was such a hit, I decided to make the celeriac salad in a similar fashion. However as celeriac has a more subtle flavour than beetroot & tends to turn brown soon after grated, I decide to make a creamy dressing for whiteness of colour, with a little less vinegar so you could still taste the natural flavour of the celeriac & used fresh thyme to compliment.

RECIPE - SWEET PEA Blog

IMPORTANT NOTE: Prepare the salad dressing FIRST, before  grating the celeriac. Celeriac oxidises when exposed to the air, turning a slightly brownish colour. The vinegar in the salad dressing stops this effect.  Otherwise if you are set on grating first, a dash of lemon juice over the grated celeriac will keep it looking fresh while adding a slight tartness to your salad.

Thyme salad dressing:

• 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon French mustard
• 1/8 teaspoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme (use dried if necessary) + for decoration
• salt & pepper to taste

Celeriac (celery root)

• 1 whole celeriac (celery root) = approx. 200g when grated

1. First make the salad dressing. Combine the oil, vinegar, soy sauce  & mustard. Next add the mayonnaise, salt & pepper. Mix well. Finally add the thyme leaves.
2. Peel the celeriac. Chop into 4 and then finely grate each piece.
3. Re-mix the salad dressing, and pour over the celeriac. Mix well, sprinkle with fresh thyme for decoration.

This summer has been busier than normal with all the wedding planning. However, as part of the festivities, my girlfriends got together to organise a surprise hen-weekend (bachelorette) & to my delight, they booked an afternoon cooking course at Scook, the new cooking school of Anne Sophie Pic - 4th generation head chef of the French 3 star Micheline restaurant, Maison Pic.

The course was well planned, orchestrated and adapted to our large group, which included people with different levels of cooking experience. In a modern, luminous kitchen, each student was given an apron, copy of the recipes to be cooked and access to fresh seasonal ingredients. We then worked through the dishes step by step, with the added chef’s perks of being able to eat what we made. This hands on approach, with direct interaction with the chef, left you feeling confident, with a broader knowledge of the culinary arts.

Out of the things we learned that day, there was one idea that I felt would make an excellent base for other dishes. This was the unpuffed puff pastry rounds - a contradictory idea I know, but ever so good. Thus I have borrowed this idea to build the dish above - a sumptuous tower of soft grilled aubergines (eggplant), caramelised tomatoes and fresh goats cheese, with a hint of black olive tapenade & rosemary.

RECIPE - SWEET PEA BLOG

{TARTE AUX AUBERGINES et TOMATES CARAMELISES}

Recipe for 4 people

• 1/2 a role of puff pastry
• 1 fresh goats cheese
• 4 small sprigs of rosemary
• 1 tablespoon black olive tapenade

For the tomatoes:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 8 thick tomato slices (each 1cm)
• 1/2 teaspoon oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• pepper to taste

For the aubergines:

• 8 thick round aubergine (eggplant) slices (each 1cm thick)
• salt for sprinkling

NOTE: to make this recipe aesthetically pleasing, choose three tomatoes & one aubergine of approximately the same diameter – your vegetable towers will appear more even.

1. First prepare the pastry rounds: Line a baking sheet with baking paper. Removed pastry from the fridge 5 minutes before using. With a glass or circular cutter, approx. 1cm LARGER in diameter than your tomatoes (ie tomatoes 5 cm diameter, use cutter 6cm diameter, to produce a nice tart boarder) cut out 4 pastry circles and place on the baking sheet.
2. Place a 2nd piece of baking paper on top of the pastry rounds and then a 2nd baking sheet.
3. Cook pastry at 180°C (convection heat) for 10 minutes or until golden on both sides
4. Now for the tomatoes: Cut into 1cm thick rounds. Use 1 tbls olive oil to grease the centre of a small baking tray, place the tomatoes on top,  sprinkle with 1 tbls olive oil, then oregano, salt and pepper.
5. Cook tomatoes for 10 minutes at 180°C , then 20 minutes at 150°C (convection heat) until all the water has evaporated and the tomatoes are caramelised.
6. Now for the aubergines: Starting from the thick end, cut 1cm thick rounds & set on a plate. Sprinkle with salt. Wait 5 minutes and then blot water with paper towel. Repeat on the other side.
7. Heat a large frying pan (medium/high heat) with 3 tbls olive oil – making sure the surface of the pan is evenly covered. Cook the aubergines on one side until soft & golden brown, then repeat with 3 tbls olive oil on the other.
8. Place on sheets of paper-towel to remove oil.
9. Cut the goats cheese into 4 even rounds & set aside.
10. Preheat your grill to 190°C with the wrack not too close to the top of the oven.
11. Creating the towers: On a new lined baking sheet place the 4 flat pastry rounds. For each pastry round, spread a thin circle of olive tapenade in the centre, then add 1 of the largest aubergine slices, followed by 1 of the largest tomato slices. Repeat in decreasing slice size. Finish with a slice of goats cheese, sprinkled with olive oil, pepper, and topped with a sprig of rosemary.
12. Place the towers in the oven to grill for 2 minutes.

LEMON ROSEMARY COD

First and most important a very happy NEW YEAR to you all. This post have been a long time coming, but between Christmas, my brother visiting and the wedding planning – every spare minute of the day has been occupied.

Therefore as a tribute to 2008 I am posting a version of one of the dishes we made for New Years Eve dinner. The original version can be found in ELLE à Table N°55, which calls for scallops (aka coquille saint-jacques in French).

Oddly enough cod has never really appealed to me – the problem stems from the name, which I find rather unappealing. However the fish monger in Geneva changed all this by offering me ‘cabillaud‘, which naturally sounded lovely and so I agreed and went off home with a nicely wrapped package. Only to find out that what was inside was non other than cod… There was no turning back. And the result I have to say was wonderful! Let me know what you think.

RECIPE – ERIKA ALLISTON – Sweet Pea Blog

• 4 fresh rosemary sprigs (branches) approx. 16 to 18 cm long
• 1 large untreated lemon (for rind & juice)
• 250g cod (cabillaud) for two people
• 5 tablespoons olive oil
• 2.5 tablespoons lemon juice (from lemon above)
• ground pepper to taste

1. Preheat the oven to 210°C (410°F) (with the wrack in the middle of the oven)
2. Prepare the rosemary sprigs, by removing all the rosemary leaves – except those at the very top of the branch for decoration!! Next coarsely chop the rosemary and set aside
3. Now prepare the lemon. Wash and dry the lemon. Using a vegetable peeler, remove long / wide  (4 x 1.5cm) strips of the lemon rind until you are left with a bald lemon. Set the rind aside. Now juice the lemon.
4. In a ceramic oven dish, combine the chopped rosemary, olive oil, lemon juice and pepper and set aside.
5. Now prepare the cod. Wash and dry the fish well, and using a sharp knife cut twelve 4 x 2 cm pieces. Improvise if you have to.
6. To make the rosemary skewers, start with a piece of lemon rind, and alternatingly thread a piece of rind followed by a piece of cod onto the rosemary branch. I usually put 3 piece of cod onto a branch.

7.  Place the branches into the sauce and leave to marinade for 15 minutes, turning  the skewers over every few minutes.

8.  Tightly cover the ceramic dish with aluminium foil, and place in the oven to cook for 6  minutes.  Remove from the oven and CAREFULLY turn over each skewer, replace the aluminum foil and cook for another 6 minutes.

I then serve the fish over quinoa with pink salt and pepper.

PUMPKIN Recipe

Last week I went to a cooking course held by head chef Etienne Krebs at the Ermitage restaurant in Montreux-Clarens, Switzerland.  I had been looking forward to this course for weeks…. counting the days, not sleeping the night before, arriving a half hour early… the word ‘eager beaver’ comes to mind. However I was not disappointed. In a small class of 12, he showed us step by step how to make a terrine of rabbit, fois gras & nuts, a fillet of sole on a bed of sautéed endives with a caramelised beetroot sauce (a great success), followed by a savoury wild bolet crème brûlée, sautéed frois gras & caramelised onigons , finishing with a basil pumpkin risotto accompanied by tiny tender frogs thighs! The finishing touch was a desert of poached pears with a delicate spiced cream sauce (which I plan to make and post), and a dark bitter sweet chocolate tart.

A highlight of the course was that I learned interesting little TIPS :  dried or frozen bolet mushrooms have a stronger perfume and are better to use in the crème brûlée than the fresh garden variety!! Caramelised onions can be made and stored for future use. Also by heating a few cups of vegetable oil in a pan you can fry whole basil leaves for decoration (they stay green & will keep if stored in an air tight container between layers of wax paper for say a week). Re the sautéed endives – lemon juice stops them from turning brown, and the sugar takes away the bitter taste. For an easy cutting method : holding the white end of the endive, point it down at an angle, and starting with greenish part, cut the endive as if your were shaving a pencil with a knife – fast and easy and leaves the bitter core behind that you don’t want.

As for the risotto, Chef Krebs let us in on a little SECRET….. in his restaurant, where time is of the essence, he has developed a method of cooking the risotto in TWO STAGES: follow your traditional risotto recipe, but cook the rice until you have used only HALF of the bouillon (stock). Remove from the heat and let cool - then store in the fridge covered with plastic wrap. When the time comes to make the risotto for your guests, simply remove it from the fridge a little in advance to bring the rice to room temperature, then continue making your risotto as before, using the rest of the bouillon etc. This can be a handy trick if you are pressed for time and have people coming over for dinner after work.

Inspired by this cooking course, I have created my own risotto recipe keeping in mind the suggestion a friend of mine Alice gave me, to use pumpkin & fresh sprigs of rosemary.

RECIPE – SWEET PEA BLOG

Here are a few HINTS for those who have never made riotto:

1. Use the best quality short grain rice= Carnaroli. Alternatively you can use Aborio rice which may be easier to find.
2. Don’t wash the rice, or you will loose the starch which helps make the risotto creamy
3. Use the best quality Parmesan “aged Parmigiano-Reggiano” if possible
4. Watch the rice while cooking and stir constantly
5. Do not omit the final ‘mantecare’ stage- this is the last traditional step of adding butter & Parmesan to the finished risotto, giving it that deliciously rich & creamy texture.
6. Serve immediately, as when the risotto cools it thickens and looses some of its creamy quality.

RISOTTO : for approx. 4 people

• 300 grams Carnaroli short grain rice
• 1 small white onion
• 50 ml white wine
• 1 bouillon cube (for the vegetable stock/broth)
• 1.5 litre boiled water (use a little more or less as needed)
• 360 grams potiron pumpkin
• 2 whole garlic cloves
• 3 large sprigs of fresh rosemary (or 12 fresh sage leaves)
• 3 tablespoons of butter (see instructions below)
• 50 grams of grated aged Parmigiano-Reggiano parmesan

Potiron pumpkin preparation.

1. Start with this step. Cut the pumpkin in 1/2. Remove the seeds and the skin. Now chop into appox. 1 cm cubes.
2. In a skillet (frying pan) on low heat, cook the pumpkin cubes with 1 tablespoon of butter, the rosemary sprigs and whole garlic cloves (do not chop them), until the flesh of the pumpkin is slightly soft allowing a sharp knife to pass through, but not overcooked! Add a little water if the pumpkin gets too dry. Remove the rosemary and set aside.

Start the risotto.

1. First make the stock / broth = boiling the water in a kettle, then combining with the bouillon cube in a large cooking pot over low heat on the stove.
2. Next finely chop the onion and saute it over medium heat in a large skillet with 1 tablespoon of butter, until the onion softens and turns translucent.
3. Now add the rice and mix well with the onions, so that the rice becomes coated with the butter. Let the rice toast in the pan for a minute or two.
4. Now add the white wine. Stir and allow the wine to be absorbed by the rice.
5. Next using a ladle, add 1 to 2 ladle’s full of simmering stock to the rice, then stir slowly and consistently until it has been absorbed. Keep adding ladles full of stock to the rice all the while stirring. When 3/4 of the stock has been used, add the pumpkin cubes and then finish adding the stock. Taste the rice as you cook, it is ready when it has a firm texture but not crunchy. If you prefer it a little softer you can always add a little more hot water, stir to absorb.
6. Finally, reduce the heat to low, and stir in the final tablespoon of butter, grated Parmesan, salt and pepper to taste. Remove from the heat. The risotto should be rich, creamy &  fragrant.
7. Serve immediately sprinkled with Parmesan and topped with a bit of finely chopped fresh rosemary.

{FIGUES GILLE AUX FEUILLES DE LAURIER} I am proud to say that this is my 1st entry for ‘SUGAR HIGH FRIDAYS’!! Which is ‘the international sweet tooth blogging extravaganza’ and, as the founder Jennifer (of The Domestic Goddess blog) put it, ‘your best excuse to make something sweet and different, at least once a month’.  No encouragement needed on my part!

This months theme (chosen by Ivonne of Cream Puffs in Venice blog ) is the FIG - a beautiful and delicious little flower…. I know it’s like the aubergine/eggplant situation, you thought you were eating a vegetable and it turns out to be a big berry, and now you find out that figs are really flowers - who made up these rules!

As I love the taste of figs on their own I thought I would make a simple desert I once tried, that gives president to the fig while adding the lovely perfume of laurel leaves (aka bay leaves) , a hint of pepper with a velvet covering of brown sugar and rich olive oil.

RECIPE - SWEET PEA BLOG

• 6 figs (I use large purple figs)
• 14 fresh laurel leaves (aka bay leaves) 
• 4 teaspoons brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• mixed ground pepper (white, green, red, black peppercorns)

1. Preheat the oven : on GRILL mode 180°C (350°F), with the oven rack placed near the top.
2. Wash the figs and remove the small stems. Next make two deep cuts into each fig in the form of a cross – the cut should be more than 3/4 the way through the fig. Place the figs in a baking dish.
3. Now generously sprinkle the centre of each fig with ground mixed pepper, followed by the brown sugar.
4. Next put one fresh laurel leaf (bay leaf) in the centre of each fig, and arrange the rest around the baking dish close to the figs.
5. Finally lightly drizzle the olive oil in and around the figs.
6. Grill the figs in the oven for 8 minutes – make sure that they are close enough to the grill for the brown sugar to melt but not too close that the laurel leaves will burn.
7. Remove and serve immediately.

NOTE: I recommend using FRESH laurel (bay) leaves for this recipe as the dried variety does not give the same fragrant perfume, plus the leaves turn brown very quickly and can burn. The recipe is nice served with crème anglaise (vanilla cream). For more information on figs

{SOUPE FROIDE DE COURGETTES A LA MENTHE} When I was a little girl you couldn’t have paid me to eat a courgette (zucchini), much less a cooked one, and come to think of it, that went for most other vegetables that weren’t served raw! Now I naturally can take no responsibility for this fact and must blame it on inherited genes…. as my mother, 5 years old, sitting at the dinner table, was known to secretly hind her unwanted vegetables under the rim of her plate! Her master plan was working well, until my grandmother cleared the table… 

My palate has developed a little since then and after moving to Geneva, thanks to my fiancé, courgettes have become one of my favourite veggies. So I was thrilled when he decided to make this soup for dinner, and have since slightly modified the original ‘ELLE à table’ recipe used.

NOTE: This recipe must be made ONLY  1 hour in advance of serving! Otherwise the skins of the courgettes turn and give the soup a bitter taste.

RECIPE – SWEET PEA BLOG 

• 4 small firm courgettes (approx. 480g chopped)
• 180g natural yoghurt
• 8 fresh mint leaves
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander seeds
• pinch of hot red chilli ( I use sambal ulek (oelek) an Indonesian hot red chilli sauce made with small red chillies, salt & vinegar)
• salt and pepper to taste

1. First put a kettle of water (approx. 1/2L) on to boil. While waiting, wash the courgettes well, removed the tops and bottoms, then cut into small bite size pieces and place in a saucepan or heat proof bowl.
2. Next pour the boiling water over the courgettes and leave to stand for 5 minutes. Now drain the courgettes and cool them in cold water for another 5 minutes. Wash and dry the mint leaves.
3. In a mixing bowl, combine the cooked courgettes, yoghurt, olive oil and mint and blend.
4. Once well blended add the cumin, coriander, chilli, salt and pepper to taste. (The original recipe called for much less spice but I felt the taste was improved by adding a little more plus the coriander)
5. Divide the soup evenly between the glasses and place in the fridge to chill for 1 hour. Serve cold with a little fresh natural yoghurt on top. I sometimes sprinkle the top with sumac http://www.uni-graz.at/~katzer/engl/Rhus_cor.html

{CONFITURE D’ABRICOT ET ROMARIN} I was recently on holiday in Provence when the apricot season was in full bloom. To some this is a dream come true, to my father, whose keen desire to keep up with the overly abundant apricot tree in the garden (which was apparently getting the better of him), it was a loosing battle.

By the time I arrived he couldn’t look, let alone eat another one. Help was on the way Perfectly juicy and ripe, just waiting to be plucked and in close proximity to the rosemary bushes…. I couldn’t wait to make jam and thought how nicely the two would go together.

Jam Making WITHOUT PECTIN:

• I use the juice of a lemon = natural pectin, as the thickening agent for jam
• Certain fruits / berries such as blackberries naturally contain a high % of pectin, requiring less cooking time when making jam & little or no lemon juice

RECIPE – SWEET PEA BLOG

• Buy 5kg of whole local ripe apricots
• 2.72kg of white sugar  (the key is 0,8kg of sugar for 1kg of chopped fruit)
• 1 lemon
• 5 sprigs of fresh rosemary
• 12 large jam jars (445ml each)

Rosemary sack : Place the 5 whole rosemary sprigs in a clean nylon stocking and knot the end (no I am not mad this works, you can also use cheese-cloth if you prefer)  

Jam jar preparation :

1. Preheat your oven to 100°C.
2. To sterilise the jam jars (bocals), wash them in hot soapy water, rinse and place on a tray in the oven while you make the jam.

Jam making :

• Squeeze the juice of one lemon and set aside.
• Next wash the apricots and cut them into quarters (or halves if you prefer larger pieces of fruit in your jam!) You should end up with approximately 3,4kg of chopped fruit.
• In a very large saucepan (preferably one for making soup) add the chopped apricots and cover with sugar. I often do this step the night before, the fruit will keep if well covered with the sugar.
• On the stove bring the apricots & sugar  to a rolling boil, now add the rosemary sack, and cook for 15 minutes. Then add the lemon juice and cook for at least another 5 minutes until the “GOUTTE TEST” works.
• Remove the jam jars from the oven and with a ladle fill each jam jar until approx. 1cm from the surface. Cover with plastic or screw tops. Leave to set for 3 days.

“GOUTTE TEST”: a goutte is a drop, and as I do not use pectin / certo to thicken the jam (the lemon juice helps with this), you need to cook it until, after dipping the wooden spoon in the boiling jam and then holding the spoon horizontally over the saucepan, the LAST  goutte / drop does not fall off the spoon but holds. You then know your jam will set.

NOTE  : jam is often made using the ratio of 1kg chopped fruit to 1kg of sugar. I find this produces a jam that is too sweet and as such have reduced the sugar to 0,8kg.