Bacon topped Roasted Pumpkin and Cauliflower Soup

This soup was so easy and delicious I have to write down how I made it so that I can make it again next winter! It all started because I didn't cook a meal I had planned which left me with half of a pumpkin and a head of cauliflower that really needed to be used.  I didn't really have a piece of meat or any potatoes to go with them so a roast was not on the table.  I didn't want to go to the shops ... you know, it was one of those days!  We all have them, right?! So, I scrounged around and this is what I came up with.

1/2 of a Kent pumpkin

1 head of cauliflower 

1 head of garlic

A couple of onions

I chopped the pumpkin and cauliflower, peeled and quartered the onions, and just peeled the garlic.  I put all of that in a large baking dish (lined with baking paper of course) and coasted with olive oil.  I roasted them in the oven on like 180C (350F) until the pumpkin was soft and the cauliflower was starting to brown. 

I put all of that into my blender, added a bit of chicken stock and blended it to a thick soup consistency. 

We love toppings on our soups too so while the veggies were roasting, I chopped up the following.

1 small onion

A couple cloves of garlic

A few rashers of bacon

I fried them all together ... starting with the bacon because it takes a bit longer ... then adding the garlic and onion and cooking til garlic is not longer bitter and onions are soft.

I served the soup in a bowl, sprinkled with the topping. 

I had intended to grab a few chives out of the garden as well to sprinkle on the top, but I forgot!  Oh well ... next time!

{Roasted} BEETS!

Perhaps you are looking for a simple, easy, delicious way to get some more color (and vitamins) into your life.  Well look no further my friend! Ok, keep looking further, but also try this recipe! 

ROASTED BEETS

4 beets, washed.  Make sure you get beets that are all about the same size and shape or they won't cook at the same rate.
Olive oil
Salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F

Wrap each beet in foil, place in a rimmed baking receptacle.  Make sure that if you drop a beet, you immediately yell out, "beet down!"

Bake for 45 min to 1 hour (mine took a little longer, but I neglected to preheat the oven) until a skewer can be easily inserted into the side.  Let stand for 10 minutes.

Take beet out of foil and place in the center of 2 or 3 paper towels.  Use the towels to gently rub off the skin.  Slice the skinned beets, drizzle on a little olive oil, season with salt and pepper.


Note: Does anyone know if this could be accomplished in the microwave to cut down on cooking time?

Roast Vegetable Non-Frittata

I attempted to make a frittata the other night. You are supposed to cook it in the fry pan and then put it under the grill but our grill doesn't work so I thought I'd just flip it like a tortilla. So didn't work ! Check it out ...

I may try this again one day. I may not. I started with a Donna Hay recipe but changed it a fair bit. Here's what I did.

Preheat oven to 180C

In a big baking tray :
1 zucchini ~ quartered and then halved (does that make sense ? just cut it how you like !)
1 big carrot ~ same at the zucchini
1 potato ~ chopped
a bit of kent pumpkin ~ I cut up a mini one and it was a pain in the bahookie.
yellow and red capsicum (bell pepper) ~ cut into strips
garlic ~ slivers ~ however many you like !
drizzle of olive oil and a bit of rock salt

I threw all that into the oven for 40 ish minutes. Til they were a bit soft ... don't burn them though !

Mix :
6 eggs
One cup cream
3/4 cup fetta
salt and pepper
a handful of greek basil leaves
pepper

SO ... next time, I will add the veggies to the mixture above, pour into a quiche dish and bake til done. But if you want to do it the Donna Hay way you should cook in a frying pan over low heat for 8 - 10 minutes ... til the frittata begins to set. At this point, do not and I repeat DO NOT try and flip it like a tortilla ! Instead, put the pan under the hot grill (broiler) for a few minutes til golden.

In the end, I just made mine into scrambled eggs ... still tasted good. Just looked like a dogs breakfast !