Cauliflower Risotto

So it's rainy in Switzerland and rather cold, but I will hold another soup recipe for one more week. But I'll love to share next week. Because I'm working full-time now, I am always looking for ways to cook things that will reheat well and still feel comforting, because fall is call about comfort food for me. 

This recipe is from the June/July 2014 winter issue of Donna Hay magazine. It's super easy and I love the way how the cauliflower blends with the risotto rice. The original recipes serves this risotto with crispy cooked chicken breasts and the risotto sprinkled with chopped toasted walnuts and crispy pan-fried sage. I took the risotto to work every day and started off topping it with chicken breast, but the other day threw some prawns in there for a change. Topping it off with whatever protein you like makes it super easy and versatile. Also, I used a lot less butter. And I left the garlic out. 

Here's the recipe:
500g (17.5 oz) cauliflower
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 small onion
(2 cloves garlic)
1/3 cup (80ml) white wine
1 1/2 cups (300g) risotto rice
1.5 liters hot chicken / vegetable stock
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 x 200g (7 oz) chicken breast fillets, skin on if you like
sea salt and black cracked pepper
1/2 cup (50g) walnuts
1 cup sage leaves
(mascarpone, to serve)

1) Roughly chop the cauliflower. Place the florets in the bowl of a food processor and, with short pulses, process until the mixture is finely chopped. You might have to work in batches. If you don't have a food processor, you can take the whole head of cauliflower and grate it on a box grater.

2) Finely chop the onion. Heat the stock in a small saucepan. Melt the butter in a large deep-sided frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, for 4-5 minutes until softened. 

3) Add the wine and cook for 2 minutes. Add the rice and cook, stirring, for 1-2 minutes. Cook, stirring frequently, for 18 minutes while adding the stock, one cup at a time, allowing to absorb between each addition. 

4) Add the cauliflower and cook for a further 5-7 minutes.

5) Heat a small pan over high heat. Add the olive oil, walnuts and sage and cook for 2-3 minutes or until browned. 

6) Divide the risotto between plates and top with the mascarpone, if using it, and walnut sage butter. Season with a little salt and pepper.

Serves: 4 according to the recipe, 6 in my opinion for a meal and probably 8 as a side.
Active preparation time: about 20 minutes
Total preparation time: about 40 minutes

Here's how it looks:

I loved how the cauliflower blends with rice. It is not very colorful as the only color in the picture comes from the prawns I added. But the taste is very nice. The cauliflower add a little bit of bite and a lot of its distinct, slightly sweet taste. You probably could omit any added salt, because the vegetable stock usually already has a lot of salt in it. Just make sure you taste along.

A risotto will always get you work - except you're trying Donna's recipes for oven-baked risotto. This is not one of them, but sometimes it's worth the effort and time. 

Have fun trying and enjoy this warming, seasonal treat!

Creamy Mushroom and White Bean Soup

So, Switzerland decided it was time for winter... Or at least the temperature dropped quite a few bit these days, so I've been craving soup and soup and soup. I'm always on the hunt for new soup recipes, using different vegetables and continuously switching the ingredients or playing around with the texture, adding things so every soup is different and offering a ton of new things. 

The recipe comes from the donna hay magazine April/May 2013 issue. The recipe adds garlic croutons to the soup, which I omitted. I've told you about my slight aversion to garlic - not the taste but the smelly breath that comes with it. Don't let the rather long list of ingredients scare you. This soup is still super easy. 

I am trying to eat healthy, so cream is not on top of my list of ingredients at the moment. I've put the ingredients that are optional in brackets, so you can decide whether or not you want to use it. The soup won't lose creaminess when omitting the cream, because of the beans you're puréeing. 

By omitting the pouring cream and sour cream and using vegetable oil for frying and vegetable oil, this soup easily becomes vegan.

Here's the recipe:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon of butter

2 brown onions, chopped

(4 cloves garlic, crushed)

1 tablespoon thyme leaves

1 400g  can white (cannelloni) beans, drained and rinsed

30g dried porcini mushrooms, rehydrated in 2 cups (500ml) boiling water

3 cups (750ml) chicken stock

(1/2 cup (125ml) single cream)

100g chestnut mushrooms

200g Swiss brown mushroom

(1/2 cup (120g) sour cream, to serve)

sea salt and cracked black pepper

garlic croutons

2 cups (140g) fresh sourdough breadcrumbs

1 clove garlic, crushed

1 tablespoon thyme leaves

1 tablespoon olive oil

sea salt and cracked black pepper

1) Rehydrate the dried porcini mushroom in 500ml (2 cups) of boiling water and set aside for  about 30 minutes.

2) For the croutons, preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F). To make the croutons, place the breadcrumbs, garlic, thyme, olive oil and salt and pepper on a baking tray and toss to combine. Cook for 8-10 minutes or until crisp and golden. Set aside

3) Cut the fresh mushrooms in small cubes or quarter them. You'll add them to the soup so any size you like works fine. Chop the onions. Again, you're going to purée the soup so the onion doesn't have to be super fine. Drain and rinse the beans. That's all you need to prep.

4) Heat the oil in a large, deep saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and squeeze the garlic, if you're using it, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 4-5 minutes or until softened. 

5) Add the thyme, beans, porcini mushrooms and liquid, stock, salt and pepper. Increase the heat to high and bring to the boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook for 12-15 minutes or until thickened slightly. 

6) Add the cream, again if you're using it, and cook for a further minute. Using a hand-held blender, blend until smooth. Set aside and keep warm.

7) Melt the butter in a large, non-stick frying pan over high heat. Add the fresh mushrooms and cook, in batches, for 3-4 minutes or until golden and just cooked. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and stir through the soup.

8) Divide the soup between bowls. Stir through the mushrooms and top with the sour creams and croutons. 

Serves: 5 

Active preparation time: 15 minutes

Total preparation time: about 1 hour

Here's how mine looks:

This soup is wonderfully easy and beautifully deep in flavor. The porcini mushroom and their soaking liquid add a ton of flavour, the beans add creaminess and slightly balance the earthiness of the mushrooms. A good pinch of salt and pepper brings the flavors together. All that's left to do is curl up on the sofa and enjoy a bowl of the piping hot fall soup.

Have fun trying!

Pumpkin, Chorizo and Black Bean Soup

Okay, so it is not monday anymore and this recipe is not exactly vegetarian or vegan in its original form, but autumn is continuously coming upon us and I am craving soups and warm meals with that depth of flavor typical for autumnal and winter cuisine. 
This recipe uses pumpkin, one of my favorite fall vegetables and currently in season. The recipe is done in 30 minutes with only 15 minutes of prep, so it makes the perfect weeknight dinner.
The recipe comes from Donna Hay's website, so here is the link:
https://www.donnahay.com.au/recipes/fast-weeknights/pumpkin-chorizo-and-black-bean-soup

This is how it works:

1 tablespoon (or less) extra virgin olive oil
125g firm air-dried chorizo, thinly sliced (you can quarter thick slices to mimic croutons)
125g firm tofu (vegetarian option)
1 teaspoon of hot paprika powder (vegetarian option)
2 cloves or garlic, thinly sliced (I omitted the garlic, you know I don't like it very much)
400g tin tomatoes
500ml (2 cups) chicken stock (vegetable stock for vegetarian option)
500g Japanese pumpkin, peeled and chopped
sea salt and black pepper, to season
400g tin black beans

1) Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the chorizo (and garlic, if you're using it) and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3-4 minutes until golden and crisp. The chorizo burns easily because it has a lot of fat, so be careful. Remove from the pan and set aside.

1a) If you want to make the soup vegetarian, cut the tofu into small cubes and pan-fry for 3-4 minutes in olive oil to which you've added a teaspoon of hot paprika powder. Remove from the pan and set aside.

2) Add the tomatoes, stock, pumpkin, salt and pepper to the saucepan and cook for 12 minutes or until the pumpkin is tender. 

3) Remove the pan from the heat and leave the mixture to cool slightly. Blend until smooth.

4) Return the soup to medium heat, add the black beans and cook until heated through.

5) Top with the chorizo (or tofu) and drizzle with extra oil to serve, if you like.

Servings: 4-6
Active preparation time: 15 minutes
Total preparation time: 30 minutes

Here's how it looks:

I like how bright and colorful this soup is. It hits you with a ton of different flavors, sweetness from the pumpkin, fruitiness from the tomatoes, a slightly earthy flavour from the beans and a nice hint of spiciness from the chorizo. You can use mild or hot chorizo depending on your liking. The black beans offers protein to balance the fat from the chorizo. 
This soup is ready in a breeze with very little prep and offers a great deal of comfort in a bowl. 

I didn't drizzle the soup with extra olive oil as I don't think a soup needs added fat. The chorizo adds a little fat and also much more flavour than regular olive oil. 

Have fun trying and fight the autumn blues with this bright dish!

Apple-(Walnut) Coffee Cake

Wow, time is flying!! I can't believe we're in the middle of September again. I started a second apprenticeship on my way to becoming a lawyer at the beginning of July and have been keeping myself busy all around. But fall is definitely making me want to bake and indulge in all sorts of lovely comfort food. The weather has been changing so much and sometimes it can get pretty cold. Usually this will send me to the sofa with a big cup of tea and some kind of piece of cake. I don't know why but I love love love apples at the moment. There is such a variety available, sweet, crisp, tart, whichever way you like them and they'll help you make sure you're getting vitamins and staying healthy in the season of runny noses and colds. Ok, maybe not the apples you've used in baked goods.... 

This recipe comes from a calendar my boyfriend's lovely parents brought me as a gift from a trip to the US two years ago. I've been making a few switches here and there, but overall it never failed me.

Here's the recipe:

1 1/2 cups (375 ml) canola oil (I've used sunflower, because that's what I usually have at home)
1 cup (220g) white sugar
1 cup (175g) dark brown sugar
4 eggs
2 1/2 cups (375g) all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 apples
1/4 cup (ca. 50g) chopped walnuts 

1) In a large bowl mix together the oil and sugars. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, and add the vanilla.

2) In a second bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and cinnamon. Blend into the egg mixture.

3) Peel and chop the apples. You can cut the pieces to any size you like. I usually end up with 1/4 inch cubes. Chop the walnuts and add to the dough along with the apple pieces.

4) Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F). Grease a bundt cake pan and dust with flour. Pour the dough into the tin, make sure it is evenly distributed.

5) Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes until a skewer comes out completely clean.

Yield: 1 bundt cake, approx. 16 pieces
Active preparation time: 30 minutes
Total preparation time: 1 hour 45 minutes

Here's how mine turned out:

This cake is very moist from the apples. I didn't use specific apples for baking, but my favorite kind called Elstar. You have to make sure the cake is cooked through or you won't be able to get it out of the tin. It is also super important to wait until the cake has cooled a fair bit or you will end up breaking the cake trying to get it out of the tin. The reason I'm sharing this recipe now even though I've been making it a few times already is that I've been trough all the errors listed above and ended up with cakes not worthy of a picture... 

The original recipe calls for white sugar only but I like to use brown sugar as well because it lends the cake a nice caramel flavour. I also omit the walnuts sometimes. The picture above shows the cake without walnuts because I'd run out of them. 

I've already introduced you to my favourite apple cake recipe which is baked on a tray. If I had to pick my favourite tin baked apple cake, it would be this recipe. It has the perfect amount of sweetness, a hint of tartness (if you use tart apples) and a lovely, moist texture. 

Have fun trying and enjoy beautiful fall season!

Honey Lemon Biscotti with Pistachios

I seem to be really bad at writing a blog. Either that or it's the fact that my life has been pretty busy with starting a full-time job and little to no time left for cooking and baking that has kept me from posting. As you might guess, it’s the latter.

Lucikly, I have a month off at the moment in between two apprenticeships and it allowed me to get back on the wagon again.

I already introduced you to Cynthia Barcomi and her recipes a while ago. She published a new cookbook, called „Cookies“ earlier this year and I’ve been dying to get my hands on these recipes. One recipe that instantly intrigued me was this one for Honey Lemon Biscotti with Pitachios. Bicotti or Cantuccini as they’re often called as well, are easy to make and serve as great presents because they are great to pack and send and quite robust. Mine will be part of a gift to my boyfriend’s dad on his birthday.

Don't let the steps fool you. This recipe is super easy and fool-proof. You can't go wrong. 

Here it is:

100g (3.5 oz) pistachios, peeled

280g (9.8 oz; a little less than 2 cups) all-purpose flour

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

50ml (1/4 cup) mild olive oil (search for those labeled "mild", not "extra vergine")

85g (3 oz; good 1/3 cup) granulated sugar

1 tablespoon lemon zest, finely grated

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons (60g; 2.1 oz) honey

1) Preheat the oven to 175°C (°F). Line a tray with a baking sheet. Roast the pistachios in the oven for 6 minutes, then set aside to cool.

2) In a bowl, mix the flour,  baking powder, baking soda and salt. Roughly chop the pistachios.

3) In a second bowl, using a hand mixer or kitchen machine, mix the sugar, olive oil  and lemon zest. Add the eggs, one at a time, until well combined. Add the vanilla extract and honey and mix again until combined.

4) Mix dry and wet ingredients until combined. Add the pistachios and stir until evenly distributed.

5) Divide the dough into three parts. Put them on the baking sheet horizontally and spread into a rectangular loaf of ca. 22 x 4 cm using your (wet) hands.

6) Bake for 22-25 minutes until golden. Leave to cool on the tray.

7) Reduce oven temperature to 160°C (°F). Once cooled so you can handle the loafs, cut them into 1cm (1/2 inch) slices. Put the slices cut-side up on the baking tray.

8) Bake for 8 minutes, then turn the biscotti and bake the other side for 8 more minutes until golden.

9) Leave on the tray to cool.

Yield: about 45 biscotti

Active preparation time: 20 minutes

total preparation time: 1 hour

And this is how mine turned out:

I had to try one biscotti straight from the oven – and some crumbs while cutting. These biscotti have a ton of bright lemon flavour, a hint of sweetness from the honey and added crunch from the pistachios. The flavour is really complex and surprising. I just love these. Imagine them with a cup of perfect foamy cappucino on the side for dunking while sunshine is shining through your windows – perfection.

Have fun trying and let these biscotti brighten your day!

Chocolate Hazelnut Scones

This weekend was quite funny. Saturday we had temperatures as in spring and sunday was back to winter. At least I found something consistent to do: baking. After baking all the Christmas cookies and tons of other sweets as gifts I had no desire whatsoever to bake during my holidays, but after a nice three-week-break I was back at it and wanted to try something new. You can always tempt me with a great scone and I am continuously on the search for a great recipe and deliciously crumbly scones. As last week's soup recipe from goop worked quite nicely, I decided to give the Scones recipe from Huckleberry bakery that is featured on the site a try. 
Here's the link: http://goop.com/recipes/chocolate-hazelnut-scones/

Here's my slightly adapted version of the recipe with metric and cup measures:

1 3/4 cups + two tablespoons (300g) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (50g) ground hazelnuts
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon baking powder
5 tablespoons (40g) sugar, plus a little extra for sprinkling
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup + 2 tablespoons (255g) cold unsalted butter
6 tablespoons (90ml) buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup (140g) dark chocolate
1 eggyolk
1 tablespoon cream

1) Toast the ground hazelnuts in a pan, stirring all the time until evenly browned. Chop the chocolate into small pieces.

2) Mix the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and hazelnuts in a large bowl. 

3) Cut the butter into 1/2-inch (about 12mm) cubes. Work the butter with your fingertips until the pieces are about the size of peas. Add the buttermilk, vanilla and dark chocolate and lightly toss to distribute.

4) Dump everything on a lightly floured surface. Quickly flatten the dough. Gather the dough back in a mound and repeat. Don't overwork the dough, you should still be able to see some bits of butter. 

5) I used a 1/4 cup to measure the dough and formed balls from the dough which I slightly flattened before baking. Feel free to form a large disc and cut triangles if you like your scones better that way. 

6) Place the scones on a sheet of baking paper. Freeze for at least two hours before baking or up to 1 month, tightly wrapped in clingfilm.

7) Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Remove the scones from the freezer. Place them on a baking tray with plenty of breathing room. Whisk the egg yolk and cream. Brush the scones with the egg wash and sprinkle with granulated sugar before baking. Bake from frozen until cooked trough, nicely browned, and easily lifted off the tray, about 35 minutes.

Yield: 11 scones
Active preparation time: about 20 minutes
Total preparation time: about 55 minutes (plus at least 2 hours freezing time)

Here's what mine look like:  

Feel free to adapt the size as the scones are quite large. Freezing the scones before baking was new to me. I had never tried a recipe that advised you to. It does make perfect sense though, as cold butter will ensure your end up with fluffy yet flaky scones. These scones perfectly hit the spot - slightly warm and straight from the oven. I followed the recipe and used 1 teaspoon of salt, however, I find them a little bit on the salty side and would advise you to cut the teaspoon in half. You'll still have the hint of saltiness you're aiming for, but the sweetness will be the main component. 

Have fun trying!

Red Lentil Soup

It's official: the new year has started, it's back-to-work-week and the winter has finally reached Switzerland during the holidays as well. So I figured a soup would 1) be a great way to fight the chill after my way home and 2) help me get back to healthy yet satisfying eating habits. As you know, I am a reader of Gwyneth Paltrow's goop website. I don't follow her tips religiously, but I might take an idea here or there. And so I decided to try some of the recipes from this year's Detox newsletter instead of doing a whole cleanse. I simply don't have the time to get all that cooking in while working full-time. The first recipe I've tried is today's red lentil soup. I instantly liked the idea of brightening the earthy lentil flavour with lime juice and adding a spicy kick from ginger and curry. So here's the link to the recipe:
http://goop.com/recipes/red-lentil-soup/

And here's my step-by-step-guide.

1) Rinse 1 cup of red lentils and set aside. Cut 1 medium onion into fine slices. Mince 1 inch of ginger and slice two cloves of garlic. Mince 1 small handful cilantro stems. 

2) Heat two tablespoons of coconut oil (I substituted sunflower seed oil) in a saucepan over medium heat and sauté the onions for about 10 minutes until translucent and slightly brown.

3) Add the garlic, ginger, cilantro stems, 2 teaspoons ground cumin, 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander and 1/2 teaspoon curry powder and sauté for two more minutes until fragrant.

4) Add the rinsed lentils and 4 cups of water. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat to a simmer, cover and let cook for about 20 minutes, until the lentils are tender. Gwyneth advises to stir frequently as the lentils tend to stick to the pot. Mine however didn't stick at all. 

5) Blend the soup, add the juice of 1 lime and check the seasoning. If you like your soup a little thinner, thin with water for reaching your desired consistency.

Active preparation time: about 10 minutes
Total preparation time: about 35 minutes
Serves: 3-4 (depending on the people you feed)

Here's what my soup looked like:

I really love the different flavours. It's what makes this soup interesting. The lime adds a beautiful zing that nicely balances the rather earthy flavour from the lentils. The curry and ginger add a little spiciness. This soup is well balanced without being boring and the creaminess makes it even more comforting. I served mine along some bread (which of course you wouldn't be allowed to have during detox week). 

I hope you are starting your new year in great spirits and have fun trying this warming treat!