Seasonal Soup

I've been wanting to make pumpkin soup since my parents started growing them in the alotment this summer. Today I finally mustered up the surplus energy.

Spent about two hours making it in my parents kitchen. And I can tell you, working in someone elses kitchen is always a challenge. I managed to pull it all together, though.

I will be making this again, and again ... sooo good.

The soup tastes delicious with a dollop of yoghurt and a swirl of olive oil, or like I just ate it: with a pile of gremolata. 

Pumpkin Soup with Herb and Walnut Gremolata

The soup:

Half a football sized pumpkin
One big onion
One whole bulb of garlic
One tablespoon of sugar
Organic stock cube(s)
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper
Chilli/Cayenne pepper

Dice the onion and garlic and sweat off in a good clunk of olive oil in a big pot. Cut and peel the pumkin into thumb-sized chunks and add to the now glossy onions. Stir so that the chinks are covered in oil and onion/garlic. Add the sugar and a little salt and pepper.

Here comes the magic. Put a lid on the pot while still keeping the temp on a medium to high heat. The pumpkin will caramelise and the lid will keep the steam in so that the pumpkin releases its own juices. This process takes about 20 minutes and in the end you have a pumkin mush.

Run through a blender into fine puré and add back to the pot. Now is the flavouring stage. It amazes me how much flavour the vegetable combo gives, but you'll need some stock. I cheated and used a few organic stock cubes (but if I had some I would use some home made, or bought, stock). And add at least the same amount of water as puré. It really depends on how thick you like your soup. Heat up.

At this point I like to season a little more. With chilli/cayenne or just pepper. And here it's up to you if you want to add some cream to the soup.

The gremolata:

A handful of walnuts
A handful of herbs, I used parsley and rosemary
A good chunk of crusty old bread
Two cloves of garlic
Olive oil
Lemon zest
Salt
Pepper

Add herbs, garlic and lemon zest to a blender and whizz. Add olive oil and nuts. This turns the mixture into a kind of pesto. Add the bread in chunks and whizz untill the bits are crumbly but not to small. Spread out on a tray, and bake in oven for 10 minutes on 220 degrees. Stir if needed and turn off oven to let your crumbs dry out.

Picking Apples

Definitely an autumn activity. Happened last weekend, but might as well been this one. Between days of downpour we're having gorgeous gorgeous sunshine.

My days are slow and busy at the same time. Lots of desicions to make, loads of things to tick of the to-do list. But we are getting there in spite of my house and garden being a complete mess.

At least the alotment is spilling over with freshness and green. And when I get my kitchen back I promise some apple cake.

Sunday Session

Two violets decided to break through the gravel.

We spent Sunday afternoon at my parents alotment in beautiful September sun and with home grown food. We've been promised another week of wonderful weather, and I'm totally making the most of it as I know it will soon end. 

My Grandfather made this. He died in 1996.

The starlings are gathering before they migrate south.

We're getting that beautiful Autumn light, and I can't wait to take pics in it.

Dad managed to grow some corn. Sweet and delicious on the barbie.

Pumkin flower. Hopefully turned into soup in a month or two.

The strawberries reckon they can cling on a little longer.

Looking a little frail, but definitely still in the game.

In addition to roast veggies we had whole grilled filet mignon.

Not so good for eating, but delicious as juice or in baking.

Home Grown Treats

What do you do when your Mum drops off a bucket of beets on your doorstep? You make treats for the annual BBQ at your friends house of course.

With the help of garden herbs, some olive oil and a little basamic vinegar these red bombs were transformed to a baked beet salad.

Baked Beet Salad

3 to 4 big beets
3 spring onions
Handfull of pumpkin seeds
Fresh herbs
Balsamic vinegar
Olive oil
Dijon mustard
Sea salt
Pepper

Set your oven to 225 degrees celcius. Peel and cut beets. It helps to rub a bit of olive oil in your hands before you begin. I find they stain a little less that way. Put in a bowl and drizzle balsamic, oil and chopped herbs over them. I used oregano. Season with salt and pepper. Lay out on a baking tray and bake in hot oven for 15 minutes.

While the beets cool make a vinaigrette of 2 tablespoons of balsamic, one teaspoon mustard, salt, pepper and olive oil. Toss luke warm beets in dressing and add chopped spring onions and toasted seeds. Save some for garnish.

Lay beets on serving dish and sprinkle with greens and seeds.

The cucumbers are from Dad-in-laws garden, and perfect for making tzatziki.

Tzatziki

You need 1 to 2 cucumbers. Grated.

Some herbs. In this case mini-basil and parsley
300 grams of greek yoghurt
Zest and juice of half a lemon
2 cloves garlic
1 tbs sugar
Sea salt and pepper

Grate cucumber, salt and strain. Leave while you mix the rest of the ingredients in the yoghurt. Squeeze the water out of the cucmber and add to the yoghurt. Easy peasy. And yummy.

The Garden

... Dad-in-laws that is. In full bloom.

Gorgeous.

And the best part is that I get to bring some of it home. This time our 'payment' for watering the cucumbers and tomatoes was lilies and dahlias. And some huge cucumbers. The sun is still working on the tomatoes.

Life in the Country

Endless days of freshly laid eggs, bare feet in the grass and wonderful breakfasts in front of the fire. These pics are from my best friends cabin. I think it's 150 years old and they've had it for 30 years and did it all up on their own.