Cream of Broccoli Soup (Without Cream)

With the onset of Fall, I gravitate to the hearty and comforting soup-bread routine. That pretty much sums up the dinner at times. I searched for various cream of vegetable soup recipes online and most of them used roux - the classic base for any white sauce and cream which I prefer to skip. I replaced the roux with potatoes (you will still get close-to-creamy texture) and added milk instead of cream. This may not be a classic cream of broccoli recipe but serves the needs (calories) and nutritional requirements of my family. 

The body of the soup is more often than not, very thin and finely blended. To build it up, I created a good base with Celery and Onions. For a touch of green, I added few sprigs of Arugula popularly known as Rocket. All this brought together with a pat of butter (its about 25 calories) and milk. We enjoyed the soup with Garlic Crostini made out of soft Baguette.

In Summer this year, I watched a documentary narrated by Anthony Bourdain, incidentally one of my favorite food writer and travel narrator, suggesting the method followed by Chefs in French cuisine  for Cream of Veg. soups of any kind. The restaurant style pureed soups are apparently strained through a sieve multiple times for a silky, smooth texture. I didn't bother to do that, besides it leaves your soup with coarse home made flavor.

~ Cream of Broccoli Soup ~
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:
Broccoli (cut into tiny florets) - 4 cups
Warm Milk (reduced fat) - 1 cup
Celery (finely chopped) - 1 and 1/2 cup
Red Onions (finely chopped) - 3/4 cup
Potato (medium sized, diced) - 1
Arugula (coarsely chopped) - 1 cup
Whole Black Pepper (coarsely crushed) - 1/2 tsp
Olive Oil
Butter (unsalted) - small pat
Hot Vegetable stock - 2 cups
Salt

For Garnish -
Red Chilli flakes - a pinch
Bread croutons - 4-5 per serving

Contraption needed -
Immersion Blender/ Heavy duty Blender 

Method:

Cut two large heads of Broccoli into tiny florets. Remove the tough fiber from the stem and chop the tender core and add to the florets. In a separate utensil, bring to boil the reserved vegetable stock. 

In a deep bottomed non-stick vessel, heat a pat of butter and splash of olive oil together. This prevents butter from burning. Saute red onions and celery. Let it wilt and cook to reduce in size. This process takes around 10 minutes. 

Add the Arugula, Potatoes and Broccoli now, season with salt and pepper. Add the hot vegetable stock and bring to boil. Warm up 1 cup of milk and add to boiling broth. Simmer and bring the veg. broth to boil, cover with lid on and let it cook till vegetables have fall-apart texture. This takes roughly 15 minutes. Turn off flame and allow to cool. Once semi-cool, blend it to a coarse puree. Serve warm or bring to boil before serving. Add more/less milk as per texture desired. I prefer to have thick consistency. Add a ladle of soup in a soup croc and garnish with red chilli flakes and croutons. Serve hot with hunks of toasted Peasant Bread/ Baguette. 

Mango Sheera

Today is my Ammama's birthday. Although she is very old, frail and ailing octogenarian, she is very active with her wit, humor and one-liners. When fit and in good health, she fed almost anyone who dropped by our door step. Ammama's favorite fruit is Mango especially the ripe ones which is as sweet as sugar. Her most relished ones being Mundappa and Kalapaadi. Ammama's favorite dish is a konkani one called as Ambe Upkari. Its a dish with ripe mangoes simmered in a spicy tangy sauce cooked on low flame. She loved waiting for the first bout of showers which would mean our vegetable vendor Koraapol would come with the most juiciest mangoes harvested from the nearby villages. Even if it was a small produce she would make sure all of them were sent to her sons and daughters. She has the highest regard for those who cook and share with their loved ones. That being said she has trained both her sons and daughters to cook a decent meal with the aim of making them self-sufficient.

Mom made Sheera for us on festive occasions. All of us like sheera made with fruits so she made Pineapple sheera, Mango sheera and Banana (Nendra Baale) sheera. All of them taste good with the subtle flavour of fruits found in the Semolina underbelly. Sheera being a Marathi/ Goan dish is a common one reserved for warm summer evenings with friends and a hearty jabber session thrown in.

Ammama's love for mangoes makes me nostalgic. I thought of making Mango Sheera keeping her in my thoughts. I only wish USPS could do a express air delivery of my sheera for Ammama. That being a wishful thinking here's wishing my dear Ammama a very Happy Birthday. Its been a privilege to be her grand daughter!

~ Mango Sheera ~

Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:
Roasted Upma Sooji/ Semolina - 1 cup
Mango pulp - 1 cup
Sugar - 1 and 1/2 cup
Warm whole milk - 1 and 1/2 cup
Cardamom powder - 1/3 tsp
Cashew nuts (chopped) - 2 tbsp
Golden yellow raisin - 2 tbsp
Ghee/ Unsalted butter (melted) - 1/4 cup

Method:
Heat ghee in an non-reactive non-stick deep bottomed pan. Once hot, add the cashew nuts and raisins and saute till they are plump and crisp. Transfer to another dish and add the roasted upma sooji. Stir well till you get a nutty aroma and the mixture becomes crumbly. Add milk and mango pulp now. You will feel the mixture is too pasty, but don't worry. Keep stirring to avoid the mixture sticking to the bottom of vessel. Add the fried dry fruits now and stir well. Once mixture is not raw and cooked, add sugar and keep stirring. The mass will be very pasty, adjust sweet taste as desired. Turn off once completely cooked. Garnish with ground cardamom. Smear ghee on a cookie tray. Spread the mixture while hot and level and cut into squares. Remove and transfer to an air tight container once cooled off.

Note - Replace with different fruits to make variety of Sheera. Add sugar only after mixture gets cooked in milk and pulp. There is a particular variety of semolina available as Roasted Upma Sooji. This one gave me the desired results v/s other brands with no good results.

Saffron Flavoured Milk (Masala Doodh)

As we slowly move into colder days and darker twilight's, I walked down the memory lane to recall some of my cherished memories of chilly winters spent with family.

One such event which I recall is Kojagiri Purnima. Growing up, we used to enjoy a fun potluck evening at our friends place on this day. Every year this day comes during late October and is observed in a symbolic fashion with friends and family. Everybody gathered for an entire night by staying awake and singing hymns in praise of goddess Lakshmi, the Hindu goddess of wealth. This was many many years ago.

As generations have progressed, so have the cultural ethos & practices. Large cohesive families have converted to smaller nuclear units. Practices adapt, evolve, change and bear a relative meaning based on lifestyle, profession, personal interest and priorities. Now its limited to the food alone and a small ceremony to praise the goddess and if possible a small effort to get your loved ones together. The delicacy served that night on this occasion was mostly Masala Doodh and some light snacks like Bhadang - a dry Bhel version. Masala is a dry concoction of spices & choicest herbs; Doodh is Milk in Hindi. This along with a splash of Saffron and the milky flavour took on a whole new meaning. As a nonchalant kid the rituals and religious practices did not make much sense to me but the food certainly did. :)

I love this recipe because it doctors Milk, the simple snow white docile pantry item in a very tasteful manner. Saffron, the spice which was weighed in gold in olden days, is still quite expensive one in the world by weight. Addition of Saffron adds extra warmth and zing to the milk. Interestingly, Saffron strands are extracted from the stigma attached to the Crocus flower and thrives and flourishes in the Mediterranean region. This also goes to explain its wide usage in various Persian, Moroccan and Spanish dishes. Sip it warm and you are on an odyssey to heaven!

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

Whole Milk - 2 cups

Masala -

Saffron - 1/3 teaspoon strands

Almond powder - 2 teaspoon

Pistachio powder - 2 teaspoon

Cardamom powder - 1/4 teaspoon

Sugar

For garnish - Rough chopped Pistachio pieces - 2 teaspoon

Method:

Soak the saffron strands in Milk and leave aside to steep for 1/2 hour. The milk catches the light orange hue of Saffron. Crush it gently after 1/2 hour along with the milk. Pound Almond, Pistachio and Cardamom to a powdery consistency without any water. Bring the milk to a gentle boil. Add the powder, sugar and stir well for 3-5 minutes. Garnish with rough chopped Pista pieces. Turn off the flame. Let the beverage rest for few minutes. Serve warm with snacks.

Note - Boiling the milk is an essential step which enables sweet flavour to the milk. Do not skip this step.

Carrot Vermicelli Kheer (With Condensed Milk)

A quick and easy Kheer ~ Indian sweet dish for a nice occasion. Today is Shraavana Shukla Poornima. In laymans term, 15th day of the first cycle of the holy month of Shraavan, an auspicious month according to the Hindu calendar. In Hindu custom, today is the day for the renewal of sacred thread (Janwa). In Konkani custom, this day is known as Sutta Punnav. In Konkani language, Sutta = thread and hence the correlation with thread change (janwa change) and celebration of Rakhi festival as well. I prefer making Vermicelli based Kheer on this day for the simple reason that its a family tradition to eat Rice String Hoppers (Idiyappam or Shevayee) or Vermicelli Kheer on this day.

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:
Carrots (grated) - 1 and 1/2 cup
Vermicelli - 1/2 cup
Whole Milk - 3-4 cups
Condensed Milk (sweetened) - 1 can
Ghee
Sugar - Just a little
Cardamom powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Pistachio (chopped) - 2 tablespoon
Cashew Nuts - 2 tablespoon
Saffron strands - 3-5

Method:

Toast the Vermicelli lightly in ghee till they turn reddish brown and keep aside. Mix the whole milk and condensed milk together in a non-stick vessel. Bring to boil together along with the grated carrot and toasted Vermicelli. Cook till the carrots are soft and well cooked. Keep the flame from low to medium and not high else you run the risk of burning the food. Separately, toast the nuts in little ghee and add to the kheer. Once boiled, add sugar (keep in mind condensed milk is already sweetened) and keep stirring at regular intervals. The mixture will thicken and begin to be gooey. Adjust consistency by adding more milk as desired. Once done, turn off flame and garnish with Saffron strands.