At last the price of home grown tomatoes has dropped, this morning when shopping I bought some for €0,99 per kilo. Came home and started to cook some home made tomato soup. Onions, garlic, oregano scallions, etc. Am waiting for it to cool to put it through the mixer . We will have it for lunch tomorrow as the Hungarian Gulash soup I made yesterday has to be eaten tonight.
The price of potatoes is shocking at the minute, they are more expensive than grapes and oranges.
Don,t want to read any wise guy remarks about Kitchen King or so here on the forum.
Donald

KITCHEN KING

The thought never passed my mind.
I am sure the Kitchen Kween will lend you a pinny if your present one gets soiled.

PS: Don't forget the Marigolds.

PPS: And of course always use Fairy - keeps the hands soft.

Ho, Ho, F+++++g Ho!

Donald, you definitely are the KITCHEN KING. Imagine able to make soup, not many men can do that I can tell you.

My greenhouse tomatoes are slowly turning red - but only about 5 or 6 a day and that's the small ones. The bigger ones, apart from 2, are still green. Means I don't have to worry about buying tomatoes for a while.

I make soup in the winter but can't be bothered in the summer. Here's a recipe for a gorgeous soup.

Courgette Soup.

4 or 5 courgettes.
Cut them into big chunks after rinsing.
Fry the chunks in a good bit of butter for a minute or two, just until they're coated.
Add chicken stock to cover.
Salt and pepper
Simmer for about 15 mins roughly.
Then add 3 or 4 cheese triangles and let them melt.

Put through blender. You can add more or less stock, as required. But, this is a really addictive soup and so tasty and easy to make.

Ann,
Just looking in for a minute, just because u r on a diet u forget to mention a dollop of cream in the cooled soup plus a sprig of parsley.
Pat

Ann
Why did you not write zucchini, it would have saved me getting out the Encyclopedia?
Donald

Donald, I forgot. We still call them courgettes. Make sure they're big ones as you don't want the soup thin. It's meant to be thickish. No cream or parsley required, as I learnt how to make this from a French in-law while staying in France.

Let me know how you get on.

Pat, you do not take the soup cooled, nor do you add cream or parsley. I remember, as I sampled this soup from a real French cook in France. (Michelle). BUT, if you wish to add these, feel free to, but it doesn't need anything added.

Ann,


As the man says

"Pardon my Parsley" & Cancel my cream"



Pat

Pat, Not at all, you're welcome.

Donald,

Made your tomato soup the other day, had no Oregano, so took a chance and added a few bay leaves, the soup was delicious. I had'nt made tomato soup for years,
usually make onion or veg.

I highly recommend it.

Katie

Hi all, Must try Donald's tomato soup. Did you ever try spicy parsnip or potato and leek? Both lovely. One time when Kelly's had a box of mushrooms going for next to nothing, I bought them. Made mushroom soup but was so fed up peeling off the skins, haven't made it ever again.

Ann,
Should have known Rachel is too grown up, excuse me, but I loved those films, look who is the child.
Leona is a singer who won the X Factor last year, she is a great singer and lovely looking,Rachel has good taste.

Just had a bowl of your courgette soup, delicious, sweetie enjoyed it too, he said I suppose, we will have tomato and courgette soup for the next couple of
years, very funny is'nt he.

Bet Rachel like "Dirty Dancing".

Katie

Ladies and Fellow cooks
I remember tomato soup in Hilden school ( 1955 ) for lunch before the container dinners, cooked in the Central school were delivered to the surrounding schools in Lisburn ( 7 old pence with dessert ) . Getting back to the soup , it cost 2d I think, it was enriched with the remaining milk from the 10.00h break. Mrs McGilbey?? who lived in Grand St and some other ladies served it. Her daughter was married and widowed to a shop owner from Seymour St near Parkinson's Newsagent and Justs Radio shop. My Gran was very surprised that I wished to eat in school instead of what she cooked for " the workers ". I chose to eat in the school because of the dessert, as we ( as probably 99% of the other people )never got a dessert. Us clever fellows always tried to sit at the end of the tables as we were chosen to bring the teachers dessert to them and the servers would always put an extra portion on the plates.
Haven,t tried the zucchini soup yet as my neighbour,s zucchini crop is not ready for eating.
Donald

Donald, this tale was told to me by my late brother Joseph. You may or may not remember the incident.

Joe said that around the first year that school dinners were introduced in Hilden School, the pupils got as much as they wanted. SO, one day they had an eating competition to see who could eat the most.
Gerald Lavery may have won but as he struggled with another mouthful, he suddenly announced that he couldn't see. Next minute, he collapsed under the table. Talk about eating yourself blind. That's a true story.

Another thing, which Joe told me, was that Tommy Roberts (Tommy won't mind) used to lift the salt cellar and insert it up his nostrils. Well, would you put salt on your food after that?

I remember one day in the Convent School I had my packed lunch with an apple on top sitting on my desk, just before lunchtime. A girl, who shall remain unnamed (No, not Katie) but of whom I would have been afraid, stuck her pencil right through my apple. I never said a word, I was quiet then.

Katie, Rachel says Dirty Dancing is awful. I asked her why but she said "Just"!

Ann,
I missed that time, pity.

Pat

Hi all, everyone complains about school dinners. When I went to the Tech, I LOVED the school dinners. When we were in RE class, which was beside the canteen, I could smell the aroma of the dinners and it made me feel very hungry I absolutely LOVED my dinner. I could have eaten two, but then I always was a glutton.

My mother, who worked in the mill and started at around 3 o'clock, used to leave our dinners in the gas oven. She had it all set out on plates. Potatoes, meat and veg. When I came home from school I could smell the lovely aroma of dinner It would have been browned on top but I can still remember the taste - lovely. She was a great woman, but, as the late Joseph said, "she had a hard oul life". We don't know we're living.

Ann
Zucchini with or without the skin? Can I use olive oil instead of butter?
Donald

Donald, strictly speaking, without the skin. However, I cook WITH the skin but that's because I can't be bothered to peel them. As long as they're wiped clean, there's no problem.

Always use butter as this is what enchances the taste, plus the 3 or 4 cheese triangles.

ENJOY and try if you can to have just have one bowl - I can't as I find it high addictive.

Talk about multi- multi tasking. Went into the market this drizzly wet morning, crowded as usual. Only went to buy more herrings before the season runs out. They're still excellent.

A friend of mine called last Thursday and I gave her the last potted herring I had in the fridge. She was on her way home from work and I knew she would be hungry. Served it with salad and wheaten bread. She enjoyed it all very much especially the potted herring. Said she hadn't tasted one since her mother died many years ago. I promised I would get a couple of extra ones this week for her, cook them and drop them up to her house.

When I came home I decided to make chilli con carne, lasagne, the potted herrings and chicken en croute with bacon and mushrooms. (fancy name for chopped bacon and mushrooms in a shortcrust pastry).

Made our lunches first, took a phone call from sis and one from another friend, which took up about an hour. Had a coffee and a cig and, after washing my hands, commenced cooking.

Everything went well, got the herrings prepared and into a casserole dish all ready for the oven.

Made the chilli, first in a saucepan for a short time, and then transferred it to another casserole dish for the oven.

Chicken en croute went well, no problem although fiddly and time consuming - not worth the bother really. It went into a smaller casserole dish as I only made two.

Fired ahead with the lasagne, added a tin of tomatoes plus the mix to the onion, garlic and minced turkey (steak mince doesn't agree with me too well). Layered it all out on yet another casserole dish, added the bechamel sauce and covered with grated mozzarella cheese (it's less fattening). Said to hubby proudly, "What do you think of that range of food". He replied in the affirmative.

Popped them all into the oven. BUT, when I was clearing up the mess I discovered that instead of adding lasagne mix to the lasagne, I had added spaghetti bolognese mix instead, in the rush.

Have no idea what it will taste like but if it's good I'll let you know. If it's not good I'll let you know also.

A neighbour just left in two HUGE cucumbers so I will now look up my recipe book for instructions on how to make cucumber soup. I hate throwing anything away and have a suspicion that I'll have to eat the soup myself as no-one in the house likes cucumbers.

Ah well, can't get it right ALL the time.

Thanks Ann,
I used low fat Camembert as it's impossible to get the cheese triangles here, waiting on it to cool then into the mixer / blender.
Bavaria being a predominantly Catholic state tomorrow is a public holiday, not that it makes any difference to us pensioners. Kilian is staying tonight and tomorrow night, we have him all week through the daytime as Denise has holidays beginning next week. Yesterday we went for a bike tour to Nymphenburg Palace about 18 kms there and back. ( where the Queen stays when she comes to Munich ). I have to pedal hard to keep up with him, He's really fit at 6. He starts school in September. Phyllis was with him in the town center today and she could not get children's, slippers for him as they stop at size 35. Had to look in the men's dept.
Donald

Donald, good luck with the soup. Let me know how it goes. Is even better the next day.

Tomorrow is a Holy Day here, although not a Public Holiday.

Big brother is up in the French Alps for 3 weeks and he says they make a really big thing of 15th August there. Didn't ask him in what way but I suppose carnivals, etc. Wish I was there. Wish I was anywhere.

Hi Ann,

Why are you in the kitchen and not out in the garden,soaking up the rain?.

A big day to-morrow in Italy, Spain, Greece, and most of Europe, I have been in those countries on the 15th, a big religious holiday, most places closed, a family day also.

Katie

Ann,

Why are you in the kitchen and not sitting on the deck soaking up the RAIN.

A big religious day tomorrow in Spain, Italy, Greece and most European countries, most shops closed and a day for families.

Did you get my e mail today?

Katie

Ann
Soup excellent, got some home grown zucchini's this evening from my neighbour, will soak them sliced in garlic, olive oil and pepper and grill them.
Donald

Donald, glad the soup turned out ok. You can't really go wrong with it. Donald, would you mind giving me the recipe for the Hungarian Goulash? I always like to try new recipes.

Must tell Katie and yourself of a beautiful soup which a friend in Rostrevor served us last time we were visiting. Her brother-in-law has a restaurant in Dundalk and she got the recipe from him. Just looked through my wee filing cabinet and found it. It is very filling, but lovely.

CARROT SOUP

1 lb carrots
2 lbs potatoes
6 cloves garlic
2 medium onions (good size)
3 beef stock cubes (by the way, always use a good beef or chicken cube, like Just Bouillon.
approximately 2 and a quarter pints of boiling water
salt and pepper to season (I use freshly ground black pepper)
oil for frying
fresh cream for serving

Place potatoes, carrots, stock cubes plus salt and pepper into the boiling water.
Bring to the boil and allow to simmer.
Whilst soup is simmering, cut up onions and garlic (I use a garlic press) and lightly fry in the oil.
Add to soup mixture.
When potatoes and carrots are ready, then blend the mixture.
Add fresh cream when serving - ENJOY.

Recipe for Meringue and Rice Dessert - serves 4/5

Microwave recipe for the rice:
1 pint milk
3 and one half oz of short grain rice
1 and a half oz of butter (optional)
1 oz sugar

Bring the milk to the boil in a 2 pint deep dish (for approx 5 mins) Add rice, butter and sugar. Stir and cook uncovered for 15-17 mins on full power.
Leave to stand for 5-10 mins until milk is absorbed.
Times based on a 650 watt microwave oven.

Rice can also be prepared in the traditional oven.

Meringue mixture receipe:

2 egg whites
4 oz caster sugar

Put the egg whites in a bowl and whisk until they are fairly stiff and the appearance of cotton wool.
Tip in half the sugar and continue whisking the stiff whites until the texture is smooth and close and stands in stiff peaks when the whisk is lifted.
Lightly, but evenly, fold in the remaining sugar with a metal spoon.

Divide the rice mixture between 4-5 dishes and cover with the meringue, sealing it.
Place in a pre-heated oven - approx 180 degreesC or gas mark 4 until meringue is lightly coloured.

Serve immediately.

Donald, I don't expect you to cook the rice dish but Katie will try it I'm sure. The tomato soup and the rice dish are both very filling and different, and very lovely.

Donald, that recipe for the grilled zucchinis (that's a wrong spelling I just know by the look of it). What do you serve them with?

Katie and Donald, some other time I'll give you a brilliant recipe for minestrone soup. It's the nicest minestrone I've ever tasted and hubby agrees, so that must be worth something.

Again, a friend in Wexford served this to us last year and it was so tasty I asked her for the recipe.

Ann,

Made your soup yesterday and gave some to my daughter in-law, she thought it delicious.
Wating on tomatoes to make Donald's again, did'nt sweetie say, he would get the soups for the next two years.
I will try the rice dish this week.


Katie

Katie, why don't you try the carrot soup? It really is delicious too. It doesn't taste like the "run of the mill" carrot soups that we've all tasted before.

Bed calls and Rachel is still up as well so goodnight all, God Bless.