Gaz Cooks

French Onion Soup

This is a variation on the traditional recipe, if you don't have vegetable stock to hand. The following is a generous serving for one.

Ingredients:

Croutons
A few thin slices from a baguette
A garlic clove
Olive oil
Cheddar, gruyere or similar to finish

Soup
1 white onion, sliced
1 red onion, sliced
A garlic clove
Knob of butter
Olive oil
Demerama sugar
White wine
Armagnac or Cognac to finish

Stock
1 carrot
1 leek
2 small potatoes
Salt & pepper

Method
The first step is to crush one of the garlic cloves in some olive oil and then add the the baguette slices to soak.

Next put the butter and a lug of olive oil in a heavy saucepan (stainless if you have one) and put on a medium heat. Once it's bubbling, add the white onion and the sugar. Put a lid on but keep an eye on it and stir occasionally.

Meanwhile put the vegetables and water into a saucepan and season, then cover and bring to the boil.

Next, chop the red onion and place in a steamer pan or stainless sieve over the stock pan, and cover. Leave for the vegetables to cook and the red onion to soften.

When the white onions have caramelised, give them one more stir and then add about a cupful of white wine to deglaze the pan. Reduce the heat and allow it to reduce for few minutes.

Once you're happy that the veg has cooked and the onions are done, drain the bread and place under a medium grill. Keep an eye on it because it will burn very quickly if left to its own devices.

Put the cooked red onions into the soup pan and mix in gently. Then strain the veg through a sieve and add the stock to the mixture.

Put a couple of spoonfuls of brandy in the dry veg pan and flame (careful!). Then add to the soup. This may seem a bit extravagant but it DOES make a difference. Without it the soup may taste a bit flat.

Finally chop the croutons roughly and float onto the top of the soup, and grate the cheese of your choice over the top of them. I don't bother to grill the result, just tuck in. A glass of robust red wine will also go very nicely.

posted by Gaz @ 2:02 pm 0 comments

Creamy Parsnip and Leek Soup


Drop a knob of butter into a large saucepan and get it bubbling. Add a chopped onion and cook very gently until soft.

Add a crushed garlic clove and most of a leek, chopped into bits. Put in whatever seasoning you like but don't overdo it - I used a tiny bit of dried oregano, sea salt and black pepper. Cook it up gently. Put the kettle on.

Spoon in a lump of ricotta and a spoonful of creme fraiche and stir it up well. Chop a parsnip as small as possible and throw that in as well, together with a bit of boiling water. Leave it to simmer away while you fry up a few lardons until they are reaonably well done. Then put them into the soup. Let it cook for a few minutes.

You then need to liquidise the soup in whatever you have. If you have no mechanical aids, just leave it to simmer until everything gets soft and then squish it with a masher or a fork. Then add more hot water to get it to the right consistency.

To serve, I threw in a handful of supermarket cheese and garlic croutons; I should have had some homemade ones in the freezer.

Time: about half an hour, and this was the first time I'd tried soup. These quantities made a big cereal bowlful.

Tastewise, it's quite mild and delicate. The nice thing about homemade soup is that you can control the amount of salt - I find all shop-bought soup to be too salty, including the expensive ones. I won't bother buying those any more. I was surprised how easy it was to make my own.

posted by Gaz @ 3:13 pm 0 comments

What's this?

I enjoy cooking, and I've got to the stage where I would count it as a hobby. If I come up with something worth sharing, I'll try to remember to post it here.

Just so you know what to expect, I live in the UK, just outside London. Over the last couple of years I have made a concious effort to learn how to cook meals from basic ingredients. When I can, I buy food that has been grown organically and which has not travelled too far.

Don't expect exact measurements - guesstimate and taste is the way to go. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: Whilst I hope that my recipes are nutritious and delicious, many of them will contain stuff to which you or the people for whom you are cooking may have an allergic reaction. You may also burn, scald, and generally stress yourself in the process of cooking. Saucepans may land on your toes, stuff will go up the walls and certain ingredients may ignite if overheated. So have fun but take care. Avoid consuming excessive amounts of alcohol before and during cooking. Save it for the meal and someone else will have to wash up.

posted by Gaz @ 2:58 pm 0 comments