Today's post hopes to address a common household problem: overly enthusiastic meat-eaters who see vegetables as garnishes meant to be swept aside. We are not just talking about the kids, but the adults whom the former monkey after. It is amusing to hear adults instructing their little darlings to "eat your vegetables" because if the older generation does not have the habit of consuming their greens, that same phrase will then be seen as a form of punishment. Children might even begin to resent vegetables since they are the only ones eating those. Grudgingly, if I may add.
On a personal note, now that I am taking a break from French lessons, it's been weeks since I last hung out in Bangsar Village. JL and I had been spending Saturday mornings in Bangsar Shopping Centre: get the weekend paper, have early lunch followed by some piccolo latte over a book or two, leaving groceries to the last. I think the husband really deserves whatever he fancies during weekends. He works too hard.
Once of the books I read last weekend was Antonio Carluccio's Simple Cooking. Now if I ever, ever, have the chance to have my own cookbook published - and have a say in its design and layout - it will be about the same size as Antonio's book. Home kitchens in big cities are getting smaller, so if that's my target audience, why the need for a large coffee-table-book size? While at it, I will also insist on full-page full-colour pictures of every dish facing its recipe.
It's no crime to dream.
On a personal note, now that I am taking a break from French lessons, it's been weeks since I last hung out in Bangsar Village. JL and I had been spending Saturday mornings in Bangsar Shopping Centre: get the weekend paper, have early lunch followed by some piccolo latte over a book or two, leaving groceries to the last. I think the husband really deserves whatever he fancies during weekends. He works too hard.
Once of the books I read last weekend was Antonio Carluccio's Simple Cooking. Now if I ever, ever, have the chance to have my own cookbook published - and have a say in its design and layout - it will be about the same size as Antonio's book. Home kitchens in big cities are getting smaller, so if that's my target audience, why the need for a large coffee-table-book size? While at it, I will also insist on full-page full-colour pictures of every dish facing its recipe.
It's no crime to dream.
So while enjoying a potent piccolo latte (I have a low caffeine threshold), I came across Antonio's pumpkin soup recipe and was so inspired there and then, I got my key ingredients at the supermarket right after and made it that night. But before we talk about the recipe, and if you think you'd like to make soups as part of your repertoire, I strongly recommend that you invest in an immersion blender. Transferring hot soups between the pot and your regular blender is just not fun. Neither is blending high-temperature food if you don't know how to. In fact it is dangerous. An immersion blender only requires that you have a power outlet near your pot. As long as you keep the blender fully immersed when the motor is running, there shouldn't be any mess. There are many reputable brands in the market: Cuisinart (very powerful), Kitchenaid (with speed options), or even my old Braun of seven years (still works).
Antonio's pumpkin soup uses celeriac, which is celery root. While the celery stalk is no substitute for its root, the idea of pumpkin and celery stalk isn't too bad either. My most vivid memory of celery is peeling and smelling it on a Saturday morning by the kitchen sink of my rented two-bedroom flat back in Tampines. Coming in a close second would be my first taste of celery when I was a kid, in my mother's mixed vegetables stir-fry. I'd aim just for those strange-but-fresh-smelling green chunky stuff along with the canned button mushrooms. JL loves most vegetables but is not at all fond of celery, which makes the soup all the more appealing to me. Because if he doesn't like eating celery, he can now drink it.
Pumpkin Soup
(Inspired by Antonio Carluccio's recipe in Simple Cooking)
Serves 6-8 as entrée
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, peeled and diced
3 celery stalks, stringed and diced
600g pumpkin, peeled and cut into large cubes
1 litre vegetable stock
(Optional) Whole cream
(Optional) Fresh parsley, chopped
Method:
1. Heat the oil in a heavy-base large pot on medium. Sweat the onion for five minutes, stirring regularly to prevent the onion from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Be careful not to let the onion turn brown.
2. Add the celery, mixing well with the onion, before adding the pumpkin.
3. Pour in the stock, put the lid on and bring it to a boil. When the stock is boiling, give it one last stir and reduce the heat. Simmer for at least 30 minutes before turning off the heat. Allow the soup to rest for at least 5 minutes with the lid off.
4. Blend the soup in short pulses, ensuring the blades of the blender are fully immersed when you blend. If the blender is held up too close to the surface of the soup, the blending may cause the soup to splatter all over. Save yourself the trouble.
5. The soup can be served immediately or reheated closer to serving time. Let your guests have the options of chopped fresh parsley and/or cream, which will certainly add another dimension to the soup.
Note that if you're making this for yourself, it is best to consume by the third evening.
(Inspired by Antonio Carluccio's recipe in Simple Cooking)
Serves 6-8 as entrée
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, peeled and diced
3 celery stalks, stringed and diced
600g pumpkin, peeled and cut into large cubes
1 litre vegetable stock
(Optional) Whole cream
(Optional) Fresh parsley, chopped
Method:
1. Heat the oil in a heavy-base large pot on medium. Sweat the onion for five minutes, stirring regularly to prevent the onion from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Be careful not to let the onion turn brown.
2. Add the celery, mixing well with the onion, before adding the pumpkin.
3. Pour in the stock, put the lid on and bring it to a boil. When the stock is boiling, give it one last stir and reduce the heat. Simmer for at least 30 minutes before turning off the heat. Allow the soup to rest for at least 5 minutes with the lid off.
4. Blend the soup in short pulses, ensuring the blades of the blender are fully immersed when you blend. If the blender is held up too close to the surface of the soup, the blending may cause the soup to splatter all over. Save yourself the trouble.
5. The soup can be served immediately or reheated closer to serving time. Let your guests have the options of chopped fresh parsley and/or cream, which will certainly add another dimension to the soup.
Note that if you're making this for yourself, it is best to consume by the third evening.
