Chilled Gazpacho for Spain

Chilled Gazpacho

Most of my international recipes are from what I have read in Mills n Boon! How I still adore those books … now I have slightly “upgraded” myself and I read Percy Jackson and his antics! Maybe when the kiddo starts reading M&B I will do the same again!

There was such book where the heroine is served delicious “gazpacho’ soup! The author went on describing the soup and I was surprised that there is chilled soup! Soup to my mind is to be served hot! Before the meal and generally it fills me up so much that I want hardly any dinner! Boooooooo! What a punishment for a foodie !

But exceptions prove the rule “Gazpacho" is cool, refreshing and flavourful start to a meal on a hot summer day. Gazpacho can be had from a soup bowl, or drink it from a glass.

This soup originates in the southern part of Spain called Andalusia. It is tasty, refreshing and very healthy, since it is made from nothing but fresh vegetables and a bit of oil and vinegar.

So this summer I am going to do what Spaniards do - Make a batch of /gazpacho/ and keep it in a glass pitcher in the refrigerator for whenever you need a cool drink.

So today in the Mega marathon which we call as “ Around the World in 30 Days” lets visit Spain.

Gazpacho

Recipe Source: Adapted from here and here

 Ingredients:

• 1.5 kgs/10-12 ripe tomatoes
• 2 slices of white bread, crust removed
• 2 cucumbers, peeled, seeded, coarsely chopped
• 1 small onion, coarsely chopped
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 green capsicum, washed, de seeded, coarsely chopped
• 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• salt to taste

Garnish: 

• 3-4 croutons (optional)

Method:

• Make a cross cut on the tomatoes near the stalk.
• Boil 3 litres of water, switch off the gas. Drop the tomatoes in the water. There should be enough water for the tomatoes to soak. Let them stand for 30 minutes.
• After 30 minutes drain and peel the tomatoes, remove the seeds and drop them in the blender.
• Meanwhile soak the bread in a little water.
• Add the softened bread to the tomatoes.
• Add the capsicum, cucumber garlic, olive oil, salt, and pepper to the blender jar.
• Make a smooth paste. In case all the ingredients do not fit in the  blender jar make the paste in batches.
• Mix well. The gazpacho should have a creamy texture and should not be too thick or watery.
• Chill the gazpzcho in the fridge for a couple of hours.
• Just before serving spoon in glasses top with spring onion and crotons.

Chilled Gazpacho

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 44

An InLinkz Link-up

Hi! First time here? Well then you are Most Welcome! I hope you keep coming back for more here. If you are my regular visitor then Thanks, for you encourage me to experiment more!! I would like you to please click on my link below and like my Facebook Page. I will be happy if you can follow me on on Twitter too!

Vegetarian Wonton Soup

Vegetarian Wonton Soup

Hong Kong cuisine is mainly influenced by Cantonese cuisine, non-Cantonese Chinese cuisine (especially Teochew, Hakka, Hokkien and the Jiangsu & Zhejiang), the Western world, Japan, and Southeast Asia, due to Hong Kong's past as a British colony and long history of being an international city of commerce. From the roadside stalls to the most upscale restaurants, Hong Kong provides an unlimited variety of food in every class. Complex combinations and international gourmet expertise have given Hong Kong the reputable labels of "Gourmet Paradise" and "World's Fair of Food".

Most As Hong Kong is Cantonese in origin and most Hong Kong Chinese are immigrants or descendants of immigrants from Cantonese-speaking parts of China, the food is a variant of Cantonese cuisine – almost all home cooking and much of the dine-out fares, from restaurant to bakery, are Cantonese or heavily Cantonese-influenced. As in the parent cuisine, the Hong Kong Cantonese cuisine accepts a wide variety of ingredients, a lighted seasoned taste. Unlike Guangzhou, the uninterrupted contacts Hong Kong has with the West has made it more susceptible to Western influences, and has produced favourites such as egg tarts and Hong Kong-style milk tea.

In addition, other foreign styles of cuisines are also popular in the territory, although almost all offer one of generic Western (authentic, international, or Hong Kong-style), Italian, French, Japanese, Korean, Thai, Vietnamese, Indian, Malaysian and Singaporean cuisines.

With this varied background cooking for my chosen country in “Around the World in 30 days” should have been easy but believe me it was not. I was tempted to change countries!!

I first decided in my chosen theme of Street Food to make Hong Kong-style milk tea and I made it too. Check here but I did not like the tea; it did not taste any different from my regular tea only it was sweeter.

Next I decided to on bubble tea in place of the tapioca sago used our regular sago. the girls did not like it so I decided to make” Wonton Soup” another delicious street food.

So let’s enjoy “Wonton Soup” I do not know how the wontons tasted as they had long disappeared and Hubby and I had to be content with just soup!

Wonton Soup

Recipe Source: Vegetarian Chinese Cooking by Kaushi Bhatia

Preparation time: 30 minutes.

Vegetarian Wonton Soup

Cooking time: 20 minutes.

Serves 4 (approx 16 wontons)

For the wonton wrappings:

• 1 cup refined flour
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tbsp oil
• A little water

For wonton filling:

• ½ carrot, cut in juliennes
• 8 French beans, chopped fine
• ½ cup cabbage, minced
• ¼ cup onions, minced
•  ½ cup capsicum (I used red, yellow)
• A pinch ajinomoto (I did not use)
• ½ tsp sugar
• ½ tsp white pepper
• 1 tsp soya sauce
• 1½ tbsp oil
• Salt to taste

For the soup:

• 9 cups water
• 4-5 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tbsp ginger, crushed
• ½ tsp oil
• ½ cup onions, minced
• 1 tbsp soya sauce
• 1 tsp white pepper
• 1 tsp sugar
• ¼ tsp ajinomoto( I did not use)
• Salt to taste
• ½ cup minced carrots
• ¼ cup cabbage, minced
• ¼ cup finely chopped spring onion tops

Method:

To prepare wonton wrappings without eggs:

• Sift flour and salt.
•  Rub oil until flour resembles breadcrumbs.
• Add water little by little and prepare a stiff dough, kneading thoroughly.
• Cover with moist napkin and set aside for 10 minutes.
• Divide the dough into 4 portions and roll out as thinly as possible on a floured board.
• Sprinkle a little flour on both sides of the rolled out portions.
• Cut them into 4 inch squares with a sharp knife.
• Keep covered under the moist napkin till needed.

To prepare the filling:

•  Heat the oil and add the carrot, French beans, cabbage, capsicum, onions, ajinomoto(if using), sugar, pepper, soya sauce and salt.
• Stir fry over a high flame for about 3 minutes.
•  Remove to a dish and cool.
• Divide into 16 portions.

To assemble the wontons:

• You can make any shape you want but here is what I did
• Place a portion of filling on  corner of each wrapping.
• Fold the wrapper so that the filling in and the wonton looks like a triangle.
• Fold it so that the filling is sealed but maintain the triangle shape.
• Wet one edge and stick the sides. Like a chef’s hat!! Set aside again under the moist napkin.

Now prepare the soup:

• Heat oil and fry the ginger and garlic add onions and stir . Your onions will stick to the bottom of the pan  so stir and you need not fry them completely.
• Add  water , soya sauce, pepper, sugar, ajinomoto (if using), salt and the prepared wontons. 
• Cook, uncovered over flame for 5 minutes, by which time the wontons will float to the surface.
• Add the carrots, cabbage and simmer for 1 min.
• Sprinkle with spring onion tops.
• Serve hot!!

Vegetarian Wonton Soup

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 44

An InLinkz Link-up

Hi! First time here? Well then you are Most Welcome! I hope you keep coming back for more here. If you are my regular visitor then Thanks, for you encourage me to experiment more!! I would like you to please click on my link below and like my Facebook Page. I will be happy if you can follow me on on Twitter too!

Vegetable Thupka ~ A Delicious Vegetarian Noodle Soup

Vegetable Thupka ~ A DeliciousVegetarian Noodle Soup

For the recent mega marathon, for the benefit of those who land here for the first time I have participated in 2 marathons. One is the Alphabet marathon the second was the Indian Food Odyssey where we have taken up the challenge of various Indian states and the food there. The NE states gave is a lot of problems not only there are very few documented online but most of the dishes are non vegetarian.

For Sikkim I was to make Momos and Thupka. I made them twice now but not together as my girls went gaga the first time and I had none left to take pictures. The second time they told me they want a Momos feast. Which translates as” nothing else acceptable” they will just eat Momos. By the time I made the mountain of Momos needed plus the regular cooking for the rest of the family members I was in no mood to make Thupka. My excuse was anyway no one will eat it.

Thukpa is a famous noodle soup recipe from the north-east region of India it was something that we enjoyed so I made it again.

This time I made one bowl of  soup on Saturday and took some pictures in the afternoon so in the evening when the hungry hordes descended I had absolutely no reservations of serving this delicious soup.

 

Thanks Valli for sharing this soup on the group id had it not been for you I would be trying to remake a non-veg recipe in veggie one. To make this soup I used my own adaptations. Some ingredients because they are not much appreciated I have left out.

Celebrating with French Onion Soup

 I  was featured in the print media. 
I need to thank first Almighty for all blessing he has given, always!

Then my husband for encouraging me in doing what I do. My daughters my who listen to all my mad ranting when things do not go my way and try and help me, my FIL for eating all the failures and my successful dishes.  My father and brother who keep telling me new dishes that they have tried… I need not necessarily make them but they update me, of course my bro is my IT expert.

Now can I forget you guys? That is not possible. You the reason that I blog about with the support of 200 friends, yes I have 200 friends now, it was a logical conclusion!

Thanks a lot for the support and for just being there for me!!

Last but not the least I need to thank Patricia and Vincent for the lovely piece that Pat wrote on me and Vincent for the flattering picture of me. Thanks guys!

Cal de Verde

We are supposed to go to Catholic wedding today night.

 In Goa a Catholic wedding is called”KaJar” there are nuptials in the church and then a reception in hall. There is  lot of music, dance and food.  Since food will be served late and the kids will be stuffing themselves with soft drinks and snacks served earlier  I wanted  the kids to eat something filling and hot.

You guessed it we had soup! And this is my entry for BM Day #3 Group2!

Tomato Soup

Every time Srivalli announced her blogging marathon my schedule was arranged such that it was impossible to join the gang. But this time I was determined to join it come what may and so I did and boy and I am thrilled!

So for the next 7 days The Mad Scientist is open to only salads or soups! Luckily the kids agreed. So today is day#1 of the Blogging Marathon#9 do check out the others.

Diwali is round the corner which means now there will be a nip in the air. You will want something hot to warm  up. There will be lovely fresh red tomatoes in the market inviting you to try some delicious soup.

Yes Tomato Soup!