Pregnant and starving Bacon and Lentil Soup

I came home at lunch time today and was absolutely starving as usual but thought that I really should eat something other that toast on which I have been subsisting on for the past 3 months. I am pregnant with baby number four and although the worst of the morning sickness is over I still need to eat every few hours, with turkish bread toast being my favourite choice. But even Vegemite doesn't contain all the vitamins a girl needs to live so today I held out my hunger a little longer and cooked up some vegetable soup with bacon and lentils, it was delicious.
 

I have got into the habit of making my own chicken stock regularly thanks to the wonderful Smitten Kitchen blog. She makes her Perfect, uncluttered chicken stock in the slow cooker using only chicken wings, onion, garlic and water and it tastes wonderful! After boiling pots of stock dry several times in the past, this approach works for me and I end up with 3 litres of stock for minimal effort and I don't need to worry too much about the timing, just set the slow cooker to low if you are going out for awhile.

 

Bacon, Lentil and Vegetable Soup

serves 4

splash olive oil

2 bacon rashers, chopped

1 onion, finely chopped

2 carrots, finely diced

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

2 sprigs of thyme, leaves chopped

1 L chicken stock

1 small piece parmesan rind (optional)

1/2 tin lentils, rinsed or 1/4 C dried green French lentils

1 zucchini, diced

1 large handful silverbeet, spinach or kale leaves, shredded

few sprigs parsley, leaves chopped 

 

In a heavy based saucepan sauté the bacon in the olive oil over medium heat until slightly browned. Turn down the heat to low and add the onion and carrot. When softened add the garlic and thyme and stir until fragrant. Add the stock, lentils, parmesan rind and simmer until the dried lentils are tender (skip this step if using tinned lentils). Add the zucchini and silverbeet and simmer until the vegies are tender. Stir though parsley and serve. Sprinkle with parmesan to taste.

Loving Soup Minestrone

We have had a breakthrough this winter, the kids now like soup, I would go as far as saying they love soup! Even Willa, who is only 1 1/2, can feed herself a bowl full. At first I thought it was just pumpkin soup so stuck to that for a few weeks then I ventured into pea and ham and they ate that too. Then I just threw in all the vegies I had and made a sweet potato and random vegetable soup and they even loved that, in fact they requested it for the next few nights in favour of whatever else I had made. Imagine if I served them up a bowl of boiled sweet potato, zucchini, cauliflower and broccoli; there is no way they would touch it but in soup form they are going back for seconds. I have to admit that sour cream and crispy bacon bits are a pretty popular addition.

This week we had minestrone. My wonderful husband had it ready when I got home from 3 days away. We weren't sure how the kids would go with soup with chunky vegetables, so we just pureed theirs, adding some cooked pasta afterwards. Again it was a hit with them and me.

 

 

Minestrone

This is probably my favourite soup. You can make it with whatever vegies you have on hand, I have included my favourites in the recipe. My Mum used to include a small piece of stewing beef in the soup which she would shred into the soup before serving, I prefer the addition of chorizo but you might like to try this.

1 chorizo, diced

1 tbsp. olive oil

1 onion

1 leek, chopped (optional)

3 sticks celery

1 carrot

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

handful fresh herbs eg. parsley, thyme, sage, marjoram, oregano; chopped

4 bacon rashes, chopped

½ C red wine

2 L stock, chicken or beef

800g tin tomatoes, chopped

1 parmesan rind

2 zucchini, diced

½ cauliflower, cut into small florets

½ bunch silverbeet, stems removed and shredded

handful soup pasta or spaghetti, broken into short pieces

handful basil leaves, chopped

parmesan, grated

Heat a drop of oil in large saucepan or stockpot. Fry chorizo until golden, turning to cook all sides, set aside.

Heat remaining oil, cook onion, leek, celery, carrot, garlic, herbs and bacon over low heat until soft, at least 10 minutes. Turn up the heat and add red wine and allow to sizzle. Add stock, tomatoes, parmesan, zucchini and cauliflower and cook until vegetables are almost cooked. Add silverbeet and pasta and cook until pasta is done.

Serve with basil and parmesan. and buttered toast for dipping.

Chorizo, Eggplant and Chickpea Soup

I made this soup a couple of times over winter. The chorizo gives it a great flavour and it is quick and easy to whip up as it doesn't need a long cooking time. You could add any other vegies that take your fancy - zucchini, carrot, sweet potato...

Chorizo, Eggplant and Chickpea Soup
serves 4+

olive oil
1-2 chorizo, skin removed and diced
1 onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 eggplant, small dice
400g tin tomatoes
400g tin chickpeas
1 L chicken stock

In a heavy based saucepan, fry the chorizo in a dash of olive oil until browned. Set aside.

In the same pan, add more olive oil and fry onion, garlic and eggplant until onion is softened and eggplant browning. Careful not to burn the onion. Add the chorizo and remaining ingredients. Simmer for 10 minutes.

Serve with crusty bread.

Pea and Ham Soup

Yummy, filling, comforting, cheap soup! I have made this with both bacon hocks and ham bones, both make good soup but I found the ham bone soup wasn't as smoky and salty so I recommend adding a few bacon bones if using one of these.

Pea and Ham Soup
400g yellow split peas
2 onions, peeled and finely chopped
2 carrots, peeled and finely chopped
2 sticks celery, stalks finely chopped
1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed
1 ham/bacon hock or meaty ham bone and a few bacon bones
1 bay leaf (fresh or dried)
pepper to taste
2 - 3 L water
Salt, to taste

Place split peas, onion, carrot, celery, garlic, ham bone/hock, bay leaf, pepper and water in a stockpot or very large saucepan (at least 5 L capacity).

Place pot over high heat and bring liquid to the boil. Reduce heat to medium-low so the liquid is simmering. Cover pan leaving lid ajar. During cooking, use a spoon to skim the froth from the surface of the soup. Stir often, especially towards the end of the cooking time, to prevent the split peas sticking to the bottom of the pot.

After 2 hours simmering when the peas are turning to sludge, use tongs or two forks to remove the ham bone/hock from the pot. Leave the soup simmering uncovered. Set the ham bone/hock aside until cool enough to handle (about 10 minutes). Discard the bay leaf.

Remove the meat from the bone, discarding the bone and fat. Roughly chop meat and return to the soup.

Stir soup and taste to check whether salt is needed. Soup can be stored in the refrigerator or freezer.

Curry and Lentil Soup and Quick Naan from Artisan Bread in 5 Min Dough

This yummy and easy soup is from my friend Pauline. She claims she isn't much of a cook and then produces yummy things like this!

To go with it for lunch today I made naan bread from the artisan bread in 5 minute dough that I had in the fridge. I had this made in 10 minutes from fridge to plate and it was AMAZING! Golden brown, puffy and doughy in some bits and crispy in others. I could eat 3 in a row quite easily, I made my husband one for dinner tonight then ate half of it :)

Curry and Lentil Soup
serves 6
2 tsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp hot curry paste (I use Patak's Balti paste)
1 onion, finely chopped
1 carrot, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 cm piece fresh ginger, grated
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 C red lentils
1 L stock - chicken or vegetable
400g tin diced tomatoes
1 tsp lime zest
1/4 C lime juice
parley or coriander leaves, chopped

Heat oil in a large saucepan and cook curry paste, onion, carrot, garlic, ginger and cumin until paste is fragrant and onion softened.

Add lentils, stock and tomatoes and simmer, uncovered for about 20 minutes or until lentils are soft. Stir in lime zest and juice and return to the boil Stir in parsley or coriander. Serve.

Naan from Artisan Bread in 5 Minute Dough
"This delicious and buttery Indian flatbread is traditionally made in a huge cylindrical clay tandoori oven, with the wet dough slapped directly onto the oven’s hot walls. Our naan is done in a hot, cast-iron or heavyweight nonstick frypan. Butter or oil will work in lieu of Indian clarified butter (ghee), but the taste won’t be as authentic. You can find ghee at South Asian or Middle Eastern markets.

This recipe also has the distinction of producing our fastest bread, since it’s done on the stovetop without an oven preheat, and there’s no need to rest the dough. You can easily make one of these just before dinner, even on busy nights (so long as you have the dough in the fridge)."

makes 1 naan

115g/1/4lb (peach-sized portion) of pre-mixed boule dough or peasant dough which I have previously posted
1 tablespoon ghee (commercial or homemade), or neutral-flavored oil or butter

1. Dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and cut off 115g piece. Dust the piece with more flour and quickly shape it into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go. Using your hands and a rolling pin, and minimal flour, roll out to a uniform thickness of 3mm(1/8in) and a diameter of 8 to 9 inches.
2. Heat a heavy 30cm cast iron or heavy non-stick frypan over high heat on the stovetop. When water droplets flicked into the pan skitter across the surface and evaporate quickly the pan is ready. Add the ghee or oil.
3. Drop the rolled dough into the frypan, decrease the heat to medium, and cover the skillet to trap the steam and heat.
4. Check for doneness with a spatula at about 3 minutes, or sooner if you smell overly quick browning. Adjust the heat as needed. Flip the naan when the underside is richly browned.

5. Continue cooking another 2 to 6 minutes, or until the naan feels firm, even at the edges, and the second side is browned. If you’ve rolled a thicker naan, or if you’re using dough with whole grains, you’ll need more pan time.
6. Remove the naan from the pan, brush with butter, and serve.

Artisan bread in 5 minutes (a new approach to no-knead bread) and Minestrone

During some late night blog reading last night I discovered the site Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes - this is the name of a book and website with recipes for making no-knead bread in only "5 minutes" (preparation time). This is the same principle as the Jim Lahey No-knead Bread I posted about last year but with some changes to make it easier to do on a regular basis. The ratio of water to flour is the same so the main difference is the amount of yeast but the Artisan Bread website does have adaptions for a low-yeast slow-rise version. So it mainly comes down to the method.

Basically you make a big batch of dough (4+ loaves), no kneading necessary, leave it to rise for 2 hours then put the dough in the fridge. Over the next two weeks when you want to make bread you just pull off a 500g lump of dough, shape and leave to rise for 40 - 90 minutes and bake. So you can have a loaf of bread on the table in 70 minutes.

And it was good! Maybe not quite as good as the original no-knead but better than any supermarket loaf. I baked the first loaf on a pizza stone as recommended but might try the Jim Lahey method of baking in a covered pot next time, and since I have 3 more loaves worth of dough in the fridge, that won't involve much effort.

Tonight the bread accompanied minestrone for dinner. My friend Skye and I were discussing what we put in our minestrone the other day so I thought I had better make it again. It would have to be one of my favourite soups. Ava, my two year old, loved the soup and thought the kidney beans were olives so she gobbled up her own and her sisters!

Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes
makes 4 500g loaves
Don't be afraid of all the steps in this recipe, they are detailed and descriptive but you will really only need to read them the first time! For a pictorial description see the Artisan Bread website.
Go here for more variations on the basic bread including pizza dough, whole-wheat sandwich bread, sticky caramel pecan rolls, naan and dinner rolls.

3 cups lukewarm water (+1/4 C if using bread flour)
4 1/2 tsp granulated yeast ( you can use any kind of yeast including: instant, rapid rise, bread machine, active dry) You can also decrease the amount of yeast in the recipe by following the directions here. Or you can bake with a sour dough starter, see instructions here.
4 1/2 tsp coarse salt or less table salt (use less salt to suit your taste or eliminate it all together)

6 1/2 cups (900g) unbleached plain flour

1. In a 6 L bowl or lidded container, mix water, yeast, salt and flour and stir until all of the flour is incorporated into the dough, it will be a wet rough dough.
2. Rest the lid on the container, but do not snap it shut, you want the gases from the yeast to escape. Allow the dough to sit at room temperature for 2 hours to rise. When you first mix the dough it will not occupy much of the container. But, after the initial 2 hour rise it will pretty much fill it. DO NOT PUNCH DOWN THE DOUGH! Just let it settle by itself.
3. The dough will be flat on the top and some of the bubbles may even appear to be popping. (If you intend to refrigerate the dough after this stage it can be placed in the refrigerator even if the dough is not perfectly flat. The yeast will continue to work even in the refrigerator.) The dough can be used right after the initial 2 hour rise, but it is much easier to handle when it is chilled. It is intended for refrigeration and use over the next two weeks, ready for you anytime. The flavour will deepen over that time, developing sourdough characteristics.
4. The next day when you pull the dough out of the refrigerator you will notice that it has collapsed and this is totally normal for our dough. It will never rise up again in the container.
5. Dust the surface of the dough with a little flour, just enough to prevent it from sticking to your hands when you reach in to pull a piece out.
6. You should notice that the dough has a lot of stretch once it has rested. (If your dough breaks off instead of stretching like this your dough is probably too dry and you can just add a few tablespoons of water and let it sit again until the dough absorbs the additional water.)
7. Cut off a 450g piece of dough using scissors and form it into a ball. Place the ball on a floured sheet of baking paper. Let the dough rest for at least 40 minutes, (or even up to 90 minutes, this will give you a more open hole structure in the interior of the loaf). You will notice that the loaf does not rise much during this rest, in fact it may just spread sideways, this is normal for our dough.
8. Preheat the oven to 230 C degrees with a baking or pizza stone or cast iron pizza pan on the centre rack, with a metal roasting tray on the bottom (never use a glass vessel for this or it will shatter), which will be used to produce steam. (The tray needs to be at least 4 or 5 inches away from your stone to prevent it from cracking.)
9. Cut the loaf with 1/4-inch slashes using a serrated knife. (If your slashes are too shallow you will end up with an oddly shaped loaf and also prevent it from splitting on the bottom.) I forgot to do this!
10. Slide the loaf into the oven onto the preheated stone (the one I’m using is the cast iron) and add a cup of hot water to the roasting tray. Bake the bread for 30-35 minutes or until a deep brown colour.
11. If you used baking paper you will want to remove it after about 20minutes to crisp up the bottom crust. Continue baking the loaf directly on the stone for the last 10 minutes.
12. Allow the loaf to cool on a rack until it is room temperature.
    
    
    

Minestrone
This makes a large pot of soup. You can make it with whatever vegies you have on hand, but I have included my favourites in the recipe. We love chorizo sausage in the soup (the kids don't eat it) but if you would prefer you could buy a small piece of beef, cook it in the soup then chop/shred it and add back in, this is what my Mum used to do.

1 chorizo, diced
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion
1 leek, chopped (optional)
3 sticks celery
1 carrot
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
handful fresh herbs eg. parsley, thyme, sage, marjoram, oregano; chopped
4 bacon rashes, chopped
½ C red wine (if you have any open)
2 L stock, chicken or beef
800g tin tomatoes, chopped
1 parmesan rind (if you have one)
2 zucchini, diced
½ cauliflower, cut into small florets
½ bunch silverbeet, stems removed and shredded
handful soup pasta or spaghetti, broken into 1 in pieces
handful basil leaves, chopped
parmesan, grated

Heat a drop of oil in large saucepan or stockpot. Fry chorizo until golden, turning to cook all sides, set aside.

Heat remaining oil, cook onion, leek, celery, carrot, garlic, herbs and bacon over low heat until soft, at least 10 minutes. Turn up the heat and add red wine and allow to sizzle. Add stock, tomatoes, parmesan, zucchini and cauliflower and cook until vegetables are almost cooked. Add silverbeet and pasta and cook until pasta is done.

Serve with basil and parmesan.