Leek and Potato Soup

I had been planning on making some tomato soup after I found 2 tins of tomatoes lurking at the back of the cupboard, but when I got my organic veg box delivery yesterday I found it contained 4 leeks, so reckoned it was better to make leek and potato soup just now and the tomato soup can wait.

Leek and Potato Soup

Ingredients

4 small or 2 large leeks
3/4 lb (350g) potatoes
1 large or 2 smaller onions
2 small garlic cloves, sliced
1 oz (30g) butter
1 pint water
4 heaped Tbsps Greek style yogurt
Make yogurt up to 1 3/4 pint (100 ml) with milk
A bouquet garni
Chopped chives or parsley to decorate
Salt and Pepper to taste

Method

Trim and slice the leeks, rinse if necessary by cutting in almost half lengthwise and fanning out each side under a cold tap.
Peel and cut into chunks the potatoes
Melt the butter in a heavy bottomed saucepan and fry the onions and garlic gently for a few minutes until softened but not brown.
Add the leek and potatoes and bouquet garni.

(I always remember Gordon Ramsay showing a would be chef the best way to make a bouquet garni - by taking a thick green leaf from the top of the leek and putting the herbs (bay leaf, thyme, etc to taste) into it, fold the top half over the bottom part of the leaf containing the herbs, then tie with a piece of thread to hold it together)

Add salt and pepper to taste
Add the water, bring to the boil and boil for 20 minutes until the veg are cooked.
Remove the bouquet garni
Using a hand blender, whiz until not quite smooth.
Add the milk and yogurt and and whisk in to the soup.

This is a rather pale soup so it is improved in the presentation by sprinkling on some chopped parsley or chives.

Later:

I have been caught out once again. Since I had gallstones removed I cannot tolerate too much fat. I forgot that Greek style yogurt cntains just as much fat as double cream. Next time I would use 1 3/4 pint water or vegetable stock and just swirl a little yogurt or cream and a few sliced chives or chopped parsley to decorate, to serve.

Stuffed Jacket Potatoes with Leeks Cheddar and Boursin

I receive regular updates from http://www.eatttheseasons.co.uk/ and tonight tried this recipe found by following a link to what turned out to be Delia online at the following link http://www.deliaonline.com/recipes/stuffed-jacket-potatoes-with-leeks-cheddar-and-boursin.

I have never (funnily enough) tried stuffing any vegetable, so this was a big adventure. It was deicious.

In case the link does not work, here is Delia's recipe;

Stuffed Jacket Potatoes with Leeks, Cheddar and Boursin
In this recipe the potato is scooped out, mixed with soft cheese and topped with leeks and melted cheese.

Serves 2

Ingredients

2 large baked potatoes
1 leek about 4 inches long, trimmed and cleaned
1 ½ oz mature Cheddar, coarsely grated
1 x 80g pack ail et fines herbes Boursin
1 Tbsp single cream
salt and freshly milled black pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees

To prepare the leek, slice it almost in half lengthways, then fan it out under a running tap to wash away any trapped dirt.

Now slice each half into four lengthways, then into ¼ inch (5 mm) slices.

After that, put the Boursin into a medium-sized bowl and cut the potatoes in half lengthways.

Protecting your hands with a cloth, scoop out the centres of the potatoes into the bowl containing the Boursin, add the milk or cream and season well with salt and freshly milled black pepper.

Now quickly mash or whisk everything together, then pile the whole lot back into the potato skins.

Now scatter the leeks on top, followed by the grated Cheddar – pressing it down lightly with your hand – then place on the baking sheet and bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until the leeks are golden brown at the edges and the cheese is bubbling.

Buttery Kedgeree

long grain rice measured up to the 8 fl oz mark in a measuring jug
16 fl ozs boiling liquid (see method)
1 ½ lb smoked fish fillets (haddock, cod or mackerel)
4 oz butter
1 onion chopped
1 tsp Madras curry powder
3 hard-boiled eggs chopped
3 heaped Tbsps chopped fresh parsley
1 Tbsp lemon juice
Salt and pepper
Parmesan on top


Place the fish in a saucepan and cover with 1 pint cold water.
Bring to the boil, put on a lid and simmer gently for about 8 minutes.
Then drain off the water into a measuring jug.
Transfer the fish to a dish, cover with foil and keep warm.
Using the same pan, melt half the butter and soften the onion in it for about 5 mins.
Next stir in the curry powder, cook for ½ min, then stir in the rice and add 16 fl oz of the fish cooking water.,
Stir.
When it comes up to simmering point, cover tightly with lid, and cook very gently for 15 mins or until the rice is tender.
When the rice has been cooking for 10 mins, remove skins from fish and flake it.
Then, when rice is ready, fork in fish, eggs parsley, lemon juice and butter.

I used Basmati rice.

Sadly I could find no curry powder as I make most of my curries from scratch.

Still yummy.
Then cover pan with a folded tea towel and replace it on a very gentle heat for 5 mins.
Fork again and serve.

Mother's other Meat Loaf

1 lb round or shoulder steak minced
½ lb lean ham minced
Mix:-
1 teacup (or more) breadcrumbs
salt and pepper
good dessertspoon Ketchup
2 (or 3) eggs (whisked)
Add: -
Meat
½ beef cube dissolved or sauce

Steam for 2 hours at least

This is the recipe I made today (20/8/08)

I used 3 small slices of bread, and a good brown sauce instead of ketchup (as I had none)

I used 3 local free range eggs and half an organic beef cube.

I found this recipe was too much for my mother's stone jar (which holds 1 1/2 pints), so I made one lot and then a second lot.

I reckon the quantity of loaf mix was about one and a third times the quantity the jar would hold.

Have a look at the other recipe as that looks more likely to fit the jar.

Cabbage with Potato, Feta and Cheddar Cheese

In response to a plea, here is the recipe before I have tried it, although I shall soon!

Ingredients

450g potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
25g butter
4 Tbsp milk
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
450g cabbage cut into thin strips
Fresh ground pepper
125g cheddar cheese
75g feta cheese
½ tsp paprika

Method

1. Put potatoes into salted water, bring to the boil and simmer until tender, about 15 minutes, drain and mash with butter and milk, season to taste.

2. In a pan, heat the olive oil and sauté the garlic for 1 – 2 minutes, or until just browned.

3. Add the cabbage and sauté until just wilted, not soft, add lots of black pepper.

4. Grease a baking dish and cover with the mashed potato.

5. Cover with the cabbage, add the cheddar and feta cheese, sprinkle the top with paprika.

6. Bake for 20 – 25 minutes in oven at 180 degrees until the cheese has melted.

Chicken with Yogurt and Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup

This evening, after bridge and a cup of tea with the Scrabble people, I made a different evening meal. When I looked yesterday, I found a vacuum bag of 4 very large chicken thighs (corn fed and free range from the Farmers’ Market), so I took it out of the freezer.

Today, after the Scrabble cup of tea, I made a recipe which I picked up from elder son last week. I think the recipe may have originated in a Milk Marketing Board recipe book, but I have changed it to suit what I have.

One of the ingredients is a tin of Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup!

Umm, this is something I never have in my store cupboard – the only tins are Italian Tomatoes (much better than watery British ones in cooking) and Baked Beans (a childhood throwback!)

Ingredients

4 chicken portions
Most of a large carton of organic Greek style yoghurt (I had no cream).
1 tin of condensed cream of mushroom soup.
(3 smoked garlic cloves, chopped finely – if you can lay your hands on them. they are less strong than ordinary garlic, so you can use more.
Seasoning to taste
Some paprika

Method

Mix the ingredients (apart from the chicken) in a large bowl.
Lay the chicken portions on a flat dish (I use a lasagne dish)
Spoon the mix over the top.

Cook uncovered in the oven at 180 degrees for 45 - 75 minutes, depending on the size of your joints. (I found the 45 minutes suggested, not nearly long enough.)

I am not going to mention the blood blister caused by pushing the two arms of the can opener together when part of my palm was still caught in between!

Later:

I used rather large Farmer' Market chicken thighs for this recipe, and they were not cooked through at the end of the cooking time, so I had to put them back in the oven for almost half an hour.

By this time, of course, the coating was browning somewhat and drying out.

Also I found that, although smoked garlic is sweeter than usual garlic, it still benefits from frying before eating, so I shall make changes before the next time I cook this dish.

Any suggestions gratefully received!

Bombe Surprise

After making the mini pavlovas, I remembered this recipe from many moons ago. (I think The Frolicking Foodie has posted a similar recipe recently, but this is all my own!)

The reason for the name of the dish goes back to the film "Diamonds are Forever" - you will, of course, remember the Bombe Surprise scene.

As I said in my last post, I don't make meringues, but if you do, it takes:

Ingredients for Meringues

3 egg whites
3 oz caster sugar

Make meringues

Whisk egg whites till stiff. Add half the sugar and continue beating for 1 minute. Fold in the rest of the sugar with a fork.

Well oil a baking sheet with olive oil. Drop meringue mixture onto the sheet, 1 Tbsp at a time.
Bake in a slow oven for 2 hours. Turn off heat and dry meringues for 10 minutes. Remove from baking sheet with a spatula, and when cool break into small pieces.

Ingredients for Bombe

Meringues, as above, or bought ones to a similar weight
grated rind of 1 orange
3/4 pint double cream
3 Tbsps Grand Marnier, or other orange flavoured liqueur.***
caster sugar to taste

To prepare bombe

Whisk cream until stiff. Flavour cream with sugar, grated orange rind and Grand Marnier. Fold in broken meringues.

Well oil a cake tin or bombe mould. Pour in cream mix and cover with tin foil.

To freeze, pack in a polythene bag.

To serve

10 minutes before serving, dip mould in hot water and turn out.

Serve with fresh raspberries or strawberries.

There are, of course, absolutely no calories in this!

*** I don't drink liqueurs, so find that buying them in miniatures - usually round about Christmas when they are more plentiful - is better.