Curried coconut squash soup

'Tis the season for soup. It's cheap and easy to make, especially if you are using your own soup stock (I promise to post instructions soon on how to make stock). It's healthy, nutritious, and warms you up on a cold day.

However, many people (myself included) are hesitant to make soup - thinking that it takes too long or is too complicated. It took me a few years to get over my soup-making anxiety but now I make a pot of soup most weeks during the winter. It stores well in the fridge and can be eaten every day for lunch.

This soup recipe is an amalgamation of various soup recipes that I've tried over the years. Soup recipes should just be considered as guidelines - play around with the ingredients until you get to a soup that works for you and your family.

Ingredients:
2 leeks, chopped into small pieces (only white parts - green parts are thrown away)
3 cloves garlic, diced
1 red pepper, chopped into small pieces
2 tbsp olive oil
1 butternut squash, peeled and cubed into 1 inch pieces
2-3 yams, peeled and cubed into 1 inch pieces
2-4 tbsp curry powder
1 tbsp Hazelwood dried chicken blend (or 1 tsp sage + 1 tsp thyme + 1 tsp marjoram)
8-12 cups chicken stock
1/2 head cauliflower, chopped into small pieces
1/2 - 1 can coconut milk
1 tbsp salt (or to taste)

Directions:
1. Heat olive oil in the bottom of a large soup stock pot.
2. Add leeks, garlic, and red pepper to the pot. Sauté over medium heat until soft (about 5 mins).
3. Add cubed butternut squash and yams to pot. Add spices and mix well. Cook 5-8 minutes or until fragrant.
4. Cover with stock (using less or more stock depending on how thick you like your soup) and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until vegetables are soft.
5. Remove from heat briefly and using an immersion blender, blend the soup into a consistency of your choice.
6. Put soup back onto the heat and add cauliflower. Simmer for 5 minutes or until fork tender.
7. Add coconut milk and salt. Mix well.
8. Serve with hot buttered biscuits - yum!

These buttermilk biscuits are from the Canadian Living website. I didn't change a thing about the recipe and they were absolutely fabulous! One could probably cut back on the butter as a 1/2 cup of butter seems a bit much but why mess with a good thing?!

Roast chicken vs roast beef - cooking tips and tricks

With the chilly winter season upon (at least here in the Bow Valley), my thoughts turn to Sunday dinners and roasted meats. We ate roast beef every Sunday of my childhood and I'm quite fond of a big Sunday night supper. 

While they may take a few hours to cook, making roast beef or roast chicken isn't complicated and there is no need to be afraid! But, I've figured out a few tips that  should hopefully make things even easier for those who want to try a traditional Sunday night supper.  

Roasting rules:

1. Roast beef always takes longer to cook than you might think. The Joy of Cooking (my mom's cooking bible when we were kids) suggests that roast will take 20 mins per pound to cook to medium-rare. This means that a 3 lb roast should cook within an hour. This is simply not true. I've found that roast almost always takes at least 1 1/2 hours to cook to medium rare - even for the small-sized roasts that we get from our farmer. 

2. Chicken always cooks quicker than you expect. Again, the Joy of Cooking recommends 20-25 minutes per pound for birds up to 6 pounds (when cooking at 350 degrees). This means they are suggesting that a 5 lb chicken would take over 1 1/2 - 2 hrs to cook. In reality, it will probably take between 1- 1 1/2 hrs to cook. 

3. Regardless of size, 5-8 lbs chickens and turkeys all seems to cook within 1 1/2 - 2 hrs. They do not need an extra 20 minutes per pound when they are within this size range. It's weird and I don't know why this is but honest, this is how it works.  

4. Using a meat thermometer is the most accurate way to determine if your roast chicken/beef is cooked properly. Start checking for doneness at the lowest end of the cooking time suggestion. Roast beef is medium-rare at 145 degrees and chicken is done when it reads 180 degrees in the breast.

5. Always let your roast chicken/beef rest on the counter for 10-20 minutes after you remove it from the oven. This allows the juices to redistribute throughout the meat and makes for a more flavourful meal. Plus, this gives you lots of time to make yummy gravy!

Tortilla Pizzas

One of my last posts talked about quick and easy supper options for times when I don't really feel like cooking. Tortilla pizzas fit within that category too, except that they are super yummy and most people have never heard of them (unlike chicken caesar salad).

I first came across this recipe idea a few years ago - the original calls for a double layer of tortilla + cheese but I've since cut that back to a single tortilla per pizza. Try both and see which one you prefer.

Think of this as more of a recipe idea than an actual recipe - as with any pizza, you can top the tortilla with anything that you like. I'm fond of using fresh spinach and feta or Soppressata salami. Use whole wheat or white flour tortillas. Thinly cover tortilla with bottled pizza sauce or open a can of tomato paste and mix it with olive oil and some dried basil/oregano/garlic powder (in a pinch, jarred tomato pasta sauce works just fine too!). Top with meat or veggies of your choice along with a generous amount of cheese. Place two tortilla pizzas on a cookie sheet and bake in a pre-heated 375 degree oven.  Check pizzas after 8-10 minutes - pizzas are done when cheese has bubbled and is golden in places. Let cool for a few minutes before slicing.  Serve with salad or raw vegetables.

P.S. These pizzas bake equally well in the BBQ as they do in the oven.