Simple Curry Soup

Curry is a delicious dish, well-loved in the UK, as it is in many other parts of the world. Now you can capture the curry taste in a simple soup that you can make in minutes using Oxo curry cubes. Here is how I made it.

Ingredients

• 4 cups water
• 4 Oxo curry cubes 
• 2 medium onions 
• 2 medium potatoes 

Preparation

• Bring the water to a boil in a saucepan, then crush the Oxo curry cubes into the water and stir to dissolve; turn down the heat to a simmer
• Dice the onions and fry in a little oil until tender 
• Dice and parboil the potatoes (about 5 minutes in a microwave usually works well) 
• Stir the onions and potatoes into the curry stock and simmer for 10 minutes 
• Using a hand blender (or a potato masher) lightly blend the onions and potatoes into the stock
• Stir in a little light cream (optional)
• Serve while still piping hot

John's Notes

Makes a light, mouth-watering lunch or serve as a starter. Oxo curry cubes are just spicy enough to set your taste buds tingling.

Where to Buy Oxo Curry Cubes

Oxo Curry cubes are available at some British stores in Canada (including Blighty's Tuck Store) or buy Oxo Curry cubes from Blighty's online shopping website.

Easy Green Pea and Bacon Soup Recipe

I found some inexpensive bacon scraps at a farmer's market recently. Just perfect for a green pea and bacon soup like the one my mother used to make. This recipe is a popular variant of ham and pea soup which is usually made with gammon and yellow peas. But what made this recipe popular in my family kitchen was readily available, inexpensive dried marrowfat peas and leftover bacon, ham or gammon. Here is how I made it.

Ingredients

• 1/2 kg ham, bacon, gammon leftovers
• 1 pack Batchelor's Quick Soak peas
• Seasoning

Preparation

• Prepare a ham stock by boiling a hambone or scraps of leftover bacon or ham in about a litre of water for a half hour or more (a couple of hours is even better)
• Chop the bacon into very small pieces and boil it in 750ml of the stock for at least 20 minutes
• Prepare the Quick Soak peas as directed on the package (plan ahead, they have to be soaked for 2 hours before use). The finished peas should be moist and mushy
• Stir the peas into the stock and return to the boil, season with garlic, chives, salt and pepper, then simmer for another half hour or so (until it thickens) before serving

John's Notes
This recipe makes a very filling and nutritious thick soup. I served mine with homemade garlic bread (melt some butter in a pan over gentle heat, add powdered garlic to taste, stir in chopped fresh or dried chives then pour over toasted bread). The smell of this soup, while it is cooking, will drive you crazy.

Cheese Pancakes - A light, delicious meal

In the UK it is common to eat the largest meal in the middle of day; they call it "dinner". The evening meal is referred to as "tea". Tea or "high tea" as it is sometimes known is not always a meal of fresh cream, strawberry jam and scones. Tea is usually a light, cooked meal.

So, digging deep into my grandmother's cookery book from the 1950s, I found a nice easy recipe for "tea" that would make a great lunch or light evening meal here in Canada. The recipe is for cheese pancakes. Here is how I made them:

Ingredients

• 1 cup of plain flour
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
  
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup grated cheese

Preparation

• Mix the flour, cayenne and salt in a bowl
• Whisk the eggs and stir into the flour until you have a smooth, stiff dough
• Stir in the milk very slowly making sure the batter is smooth and lump-free
• Leave the batter to stand in a warm place for about 30 minutes
• Grate the cheese and stir it into the batter along with the baking powder
• Lightly grease a crepe pan and cook the batter until the top surface is just solid
• Flip the pancake and cook lightly on the other side
• Serve immediately with your choice of garnish
  

John's Notes
My cheese pancakes turned out light and delicious. As you can see from the picture, I served them with some sliced ham, tomato and more grated cheese. I melted the cheese on top of the pancake by putting the plate under a grill.

I have eaten pancakes flat on the plate since I was a child. Some like to roll them, others like to fold them in half with a filling inside. You serve them any way you like; they will still taste just as good.

It really is worth making the pancakes from scratch because the flavour is markedly different to what you get from a package of pancake mix. Of course, this blog is for those who like to cook. Instant pancake mix users would be chased out of any decent kitchen by the ghosts of the 1000 chefs wielding 2-man Henckels that we mentioned last week.