My Grandmother’s Spinach Soup Served with Hard B...

My Grandmother is an excellent cook and I absolutely adore her food! Every meal she prepares is done so with love and care and is always full of the most beautiful flavours. A few years back when my husband and I were visiting Canada, she made this spinach soup and it has been on our minds ever since. I finally got a hold of the recipe and thought this Canadian Thanksgiving weekend was the perfect opportunity to give it a try. It was just as good as I remembered although I did go a tad heavy on the salt. Never mind, next time I will be much more careful!

This soup makes a great lunch or light supper and it can even be used as an elegant starter – although I haven’t quite mastered the art of making a pretty flower out of hard boiled eggs yet (but I will keep working it!)

So here it is Raija’s Spinach Soup.

Ingredients

1 large Spanish onion finely chopped.

350 – 400 grams of fresh spinach well washed.

1 ½ – 2 tsp butter or a drizzle of olive oil (for sweating the onion).

2 Tbsp butter for making a roux.

2 Tbsp flour.

Chicken stock (approx 2 ½ – 3 cups) – I used Vegetable stock for mine.

Double cream.

Pinch of nutmeg.

1 clove minced garlic (optional).

Pinch of white sugar which helps give the soup some smoothness.

4 hard boiled eggs.

Directions

Melt the 1 ½ – 2 tsp or drizzle of olive oil in a pan. Be careful not to let the pan get too hot if you’re using butter as it may burn.

Add the finely chopped onion and mix well. Put a lid on the pot and allow the onion to sweat for a few minutes. Don’t let the onion get any colour. (I read somewhere that adding salt will prevent the onion from colouring and this is where I went wrong with my seasoning – I added too much salt at this stage! – so be careful).

In a second pot heat the spinach carefully – don’t add any water, butter or oil to the pot. The moisture in the spinach will be enough. The spinach should just go very slightly limp.

Once the spinach is just limp remove it from the pot and squeeze out as much excess liquid as you can.

Chop the spinach into small pieces and set aside.

Now it’s time to begin the roux. In another pot melt the 2 Tbsp of butter and then add the flour.

Do not let this mixture turn brown. Keep it on a moderate heat and gradually add the stock.

Mix it well and allow it to cook for approximately 3-5 minutes as you stir continuously.

Add the chopped spinach and onion to this mixture. Allow it to cook gently for another 5 minutes or so.

You can grate some nutmeg into it, or add some minced garlic at this stage. Also a pinch of white sugar will help give the soup some smoothness.

While the soup is cooking you can prepare the hard boiled eggs. Peel them and cut into halves or quarters.

When you just about ready to serve the soup stir in a good drizzle of double cream and mix well.

Serve with some freshly ground black pepper and the hard boiled eggs pieces arranged in the form of a flower.

Enjoy!

Or as my Grandmother would say in Finnish

Nautiskella!

Spinach ready – now it’s time to make the roux!

The Autumn Harvest: Last Tomatoes Of The Year...

Well it’s that time of year again. The nights are drawing in. There’s a noticeable chill in the air. Leaves are falling from the trees. Chestnuts are strewn along the ground. Birds and squirrels are busy fattening themselves up for the winter months. All of nature is readying itself for winter.

My garden is beginning to show signs of the cooler days and nights. Leaves are turning brown and my once prolific tomato plants are no longer producing the lovely juicy tomatoes that we enjoyed so much these past few months. This is what I believe to be my final tomato harvest of the year and I would like to do something special with them.

When I was younger I had an allergy to tomatoes. Fortunately this was an allergy I ‘grew out of’ because I adore tomatoes. I have a few favourite recipes for fresh tomatoes.

One is a simple – VERY simple pasta sauce that I sometimes make for lunch when I feel the need for a Mediterranean boost.

Luna Raye’s very simple tomato sauce for one.

Ingredients

A handful of cherry tomatoes (approximately 8-9).

1 clove of minced garlic.

Drizzle of olive oil.

Pinch of salt.

Directions

Heat a drizzle of olive oil (about 1- 1 ½ tsp) in a pan over moderate heat.

Add the tomatoes. You can put them in whole or chop them in half if you prefer.

Turn down the heat, add the salt and allow the tomatoes to reduce (10 minutes or so).

Give them a stir every so often and about half way through add the minced garlic.

It will smell fantastic!

Meanwhile put on some water for pasta – Penne is a good choice for this sauce – and cook the pasta according to packet directions.

Once the pasta is cooked drain it and add it to the pan with the tomatoes and garlic and give it a quick mix on the heat.

Season with black pepper and more salt if desired.

Tuck in and enjoy!

Tomato Sauce Extras

The thing about this sauce is that you can keep it very simple. However you can also add some extra ingredients such as caramelized onions, a splash of red wine, fresh basil leaves or parmesan shavings. It does work extremely well though with just the fresh tomatoes and garlic.

Another dish I like to make with fresh tomatoes is a chunky salsa sauce for corn chips. This is a great Happy Hour snack. It is tastier (and healthier) then store bought brands and is once again a very simple recipe.

Luna Raye’s very simple chunky salsa served warm (for two).

Homemade Chunky Salsa and Tortilla Chips

Ingredients

A handful of cherry tomatoes chopped in half (approximately 8-9).

½ Spanish onion chopped in long thin strips.

1 tsp brown sugar.

1 pepper chopped in bite sized chunks. (green or orange peppers are great for added colour)

½ fresh chilli (or a pinch of dried chilli flakes).

1 ½ Tbsp of frozen sweet corn.

1 clove minced garlic.

Drizzle of olive oil.

Salt and Pepper to taste.

Directions

Heat a drizzle of olive oil (about 1- 1 ½ tsp) in a pan over moderate heat.

Add the onions and the brown sugar. Mix well and allow the onions to caramelize. Make sure the heat isn’t too high.

Once the onions have softened gradually add the minced garlic, a pinch of salt, and the chilli.

Stir until mixed in and then add the tomatoes and pepper.

Cook over a moderate heat for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

At the last moment add the frozen sweet corn and mix in well.

Season with salt and pepper is desired.

Turn off heat and cover the pan.

Allow the mixture to rest while drinks are prepared.

Serve on individual plates with a side of plain salted corn chips.

Enjoy!

I am still undecided as to what to create with this final harvest of tomatoes! Sometimes however, it is nice to just enjoy the simple flavour of something as beautiful and perfect as a tomato grown in your own garden. I may just eat them exactly as they are while dreaming of what next year’s harvest will bring!

I wish all my fellow Canadians a happy, peaceful and abundant Thanksgiving weekend.

Final Tomato Harvest of 2010