Healthy Broccoli Soup

September 4, 2015June 6, 20163 Comments

Green is Gold! The zinger is the added sweet peas (Pisum) adding more phytonutrients!

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INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons unsalted butter or coconut oil
3 shallots
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh ginger root, grated
1 teaspoon fresh turmeric or 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 1/2 cups frozen baby green peas
1 bunch broccoli about 1 pound, trimmed and chopped
3 cups chicken stock
2 tablespoons toasted sliced almonds
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

DIRECTIONS
1) Melt butter in a large saucepan. Add shallots and saute for about 5 minutes until translucent. Add the minced garlic, ginger, and turmeric. Cook until tender and fragrant. Add curry powder, salt and pepper and cook over low heat for a few minutes.

2) Add broccoli and combine well. Cook for a few minutes and add chicken stock. Bring to a boil and reduce heat until medium. Cook for 15 to 20 minutes until the broccoli is tender.

Add the frozen peas and cook for a few minutes only so that the soup will maintain it’s bright green colour.

Frozen Peas Adds Green Colour

3) Puree the soup in a blender or food processor and add salt to taste if required.
Serve hot sprinkled with almonds and optionally sour cream. This can be served cold as well.

Healthy Broccoli Soup Garnished with Sour Cream and Almonds

Broccoli contains cancer fighting glycosinolates which are transformed to disable toxins in the body. The younger the broccoli, the more glucosinolates.

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Roasted Tomato and Red Pepper Soup Recipe

August 28, 2015December 31, 20165 Comments

A lovely fresh, sweet tomato and red pepper soup. Red pepper and onion and lots of garlic cloves add immensely to the flavour. Enjoy the fresh taste of tomato soup in the dead of winter with this freezer friendly Garden Fresh Tomato Soup Recipe.

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INGREDIENTS
2 pounds ( 1kg) ripe tomatoes
7 oz (200gm) cherry tomatoes
1 red bell pepper
1 red onion
4 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups vegetable or chicken stock
2 cups water
1 cup red lentils
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 tsp fresh thyme
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
Garnish: pumpkin seeds/purple basil /avocado
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DIRECTIONS
1) Pre-heat the oven to 400F (200C)
2) Place the olive oil in a baking dish or a large enameled cast iron soup pot on top of the stove and heat on high.
3) Slice the tomatoes in 1/2 and place cut side down in container to sear the tomatoes.
4) Cut the onions in quarters and place in dish.
5) Quarter and de-seed the red pepper and place in the dish along with the garlic cloves and cherry tomatoes.
6) Sprinkle with salt, pepper, balsamic vinegar.
7) Place in the preheated oven for 20-30 minutes until juices run from the tomatoes.
8) Remove the dish from the oven and transfer to a soup pot if it is not already in one.
9) Add the lentils, stock, water, thyme, basil and simmer for 30 minutes.

10) Blend the soup in a food processor or blender or with a stick blender. My friends and I like a chunky texture to the soup. I puree part of the soup and combine the rest. After I taste the soup I may add a teaspoon of salt. This will vary each time you make this soup. It depends on the flavour of your ingredients that day.
11) Reheat your finished soup in the pot and serve.

You can serve this soup cold on a hot day like a gazpacho in southern Spain. I encourage you to enjoy this versatile freezer friendly soup hot on a cold winter’s day!

FOOD TIP: No need to sieve the soup. It’s a waste. Tomato canneries do not take the seeds out, why should you. Use a drizzle of chilli-infused oil at the roasting stage ( Step #7 above). Add a couple of cayenne chillis from your garden, or if you have them on hand. Before freezing your soup, you need to chill the soup. Never put hot food directly into the freezer. To store your soup, I use freezer friendly mason jars. For good Freezer Tips, please click here. If you are taking this soup out from the freezer, you can use it as a base and add additional vegetables, beans or rice – in a pinch, if you are having a lot of guests that day – more than you expected!

Bean Soup ~ A Powerhouse of Nutrients

February 20, 2015December 26, 20161 Comment

THE UNFORGETTABLE BEAN!
BEANS are the most under valued item. There is a wealth of wholesome, delicious foods out there that are being neglected. One of them is the bean.
Use your chicken soup base for this tasty white bean and vegetable soup. I used to think that beans were for granola crunchers. Now I am a convert? Why? Not because those beans were flavourful. They give you protein that you need and the glycemic index is so low that you have the energy to carry on for hours without that energy “crash”. The best thing to get from the fast food malls is chilli. Great for the diabetics and the rest of us as well.
YOUR FOOD TIP for the singles: I took out a scoop of these beans with a slotted spoon and heated the white beans as a side dish with my meal. Another plus for beans is that even if you combine them with a protein like chicken (which would be great added to this soup) or beef, you will not get that feeling of needing a big nap afterwards. The digestive enzymes that break these food items down will not have a battle in your gut. You feel fine and you had good nutrition for your body. You can add ingredients to jazz up the flavour of your soup: oregano, paprika, parsley, raz al hanout, ground sumac, za’ater, the list goes on. Your soup will be delicious too!

Freeze Your Soup

February 19, 2015September 10, 20154 Comments

After you have made this Spectacular STOCK, you may not want to use it right away. The solution is to freeze it for future use.
TIPS: HOW TO FREEZE YOUR STOCK (or soup)
I have experimented with freezing for several years and there is nothing as disappointing as freezing a soup or sauce and having the glass crack. I found that if you filled it past the curve in the glass, the jar could crack. Even after under filling below the curve, there was expansion of the liquid and the glass would sometimes crack. I now place the soup in the refrigerator after it is sufficiently cooled and the next day I would place the glass mason jar ( filled with my soup) into the freezer with the LID OFF.

Prepare your own frozen meals

This would allow room for expansion of the liquid without cracking the glass. The following day, I would tighten the lid and then the jar would be fine. There would be a mountain of frozen soup in the center of the jar but this expansion wouldn’t crack you jar and ruin all your wonderful work. Also, do not place your frozen soup in the freezer door to avoid jostling by other frozen items. Your glass will now never crack.

Why should you freeze in glass? It is inert and will not contaminate your food. The leaching out of Bisphenonl A and Phthalates are still a concern with plastics. Keep you and your family happy and healthy and enjoy delicious soup!

Chicken Soup Base (stock)

February 16, 2015September 10, 201536 Comments

Double rich chicken soup base

LIQUID GOLD!
More than just a stock. This soup base is fantastic. I believe I have the best soup base recipe I know. I am always getting compliments on my version of stock. The secret to this stock will be revealed below.

FREEZING WEATHER
I am writing this recipe in February. The coldest day in Canada. We recently reached the record breaking temperature of -25C ( -13F ) and -40C (- 40F ) with the wind chill. What’s for dinner? The first thing that came to mind is piping hot soup. When you think about comfort food, many thoughts fill your head. Right now. I am thinking about warm and comforting soup. Chicken soup is the first one that I think about when I feel chilly and want to ward off those bitter cold winds outside. To have great chicken soup, you must have a GREAT CHICKEN STOCK. Throughout the years, I know that if I have a good stock base my soups taste fantastic.

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CHICKEN STOCK (SECRET) RECIPE
The secret to the best soups is in the stock. Whether you use the carcass of that store bought grilled chicken (don’t throw this out). Freeze the chicken carcass, if you have no time to cook right away. Or, use a raw chicken carcass.

DIRECTIONS
1. In a large pot place your chicken and vegetables.
2. Add water: enough to cover all the ingredients.
3. Add your favorite herbs, spices and peppercorn. Fresh is best. (optional)
4. Simmer (very low) for a couple of hours -do not boil
5. Strain the stock and put the stock back in a pot
6. Simmer stock until it is reduced by half the volume.

Now you are ready to prepare your “SOUP OF THE DAY“. Make enough stock to store in the freezer . Most of the flavour comes from the bones. You don’t really have to add any herbs and spices. Sometimes, when I am so busy I forget to add the fresh thyme. (a little pun) The veggies will provide an aromatic flavour on their own. “FRESH” Herb list: Parsley, sage, rosemary, cilantro, oregano and thyme. Fresh herbs taste very different than the dried version. Your prepared soup recipe will have added spices and herbs. Either way it’s all to taste!

Soup stock aficionados maintain that celery, celery leaves or celery seeds are the most important addition to your stock. Celery seeds are great to have on hand. Open the seeds up with a mortar and pestle to add savory to just about any dish. I add a tsp of fresh, ground celery seed to my chicken soup.

FOOD TIP: Use almost any ( mild ) vegetables you have handy for your stock; not just freshly cut carrots, celery and onions. I just put in the woody ends of my asparagus. I also added the leafy portion and well as the thick stem of the celery. Use the center core of your cauliflower and peelings from broccoli. Most people won’t eat these so don’t throw them out. Do not add strong vegetables such as beets and turnips. You can also brown your raw chicken carcass to get more flavour. When ever you are preparing vegetables for a meal, make it a habit to throw your clean scrapings into a container and store in the frig or freezer for your stock making day.

COOKING TIME
After you cook the stock for an hour or two, strain the stock. Put the stock back in a pot and reduce it by half. (This is the real secret ) This will concentrate the flavour and sometimes I do not even have to add salt to a soup when I have used this double rich stock. The health benefits are tremendous as well. This stock is LIQUID GOLD!

HEALTH BENEFITS: The wing is the best part of the carcass of the chicken. It provides the best gelatin, (natural collagen ) formed in the cartilage that aids in building your immune system ( fights colds ). You can tell if your stock has good gelatin content if it gels after cooling. My mom used to use her stock for “Chicken Jelly” when I was a kid. I kept asking her to make it a lot, not knowing you had to prepare the stock. I was 8 yrs old. Still one of my favorite dishes!