Category Archives: Lunch

Spiced Pumpkin Soup with a twist…

…and with XXL Cheese Croutons and crunchy pumpkin seed topping!

I’ve been making this soup for at least ten years and it’s very very comforting and has a velvet like texture. When it’s raining outside this is the kind of soup you look forward to.

I was about to make it for lunch when I realized I didn’t have a enough onions. Yikes, that ment I had to go outside again and it was pouring with rain.

Thank goodness the supermarket is just across the street so I put on my raincoat and made a run for it! I came back a little soaked but hey, this soup’s worth it.

The soup only takes about 15 minutes to prepare at the most, plus 30 minutes of simmering. During the simmering you can make the crunchy seed topping and prepare the croutons. It really is a meal in itself, but you could serve it as a first course too, just serve small portions since it is quite filling.

I’ve added a super delicious crunchy topping of spicey pumpkin seeds and some XXL cheesy croutons. YUM!

Serves 6

Ingredients Soup:

2 tbsp. Butter (use coconut oil for vegans)
2 large onions, peeled and chopped fine
1 large garlic clove, peeled and chopped fine
2 tsp. Coriander , ground
1 tsp. Cumin, ground
2 lbs. peeled and cubed pumpkin, fresh or frozen
3 C. chicken stock made with 3 Bouillon Cubes (use vegetable stock for vegans/vegetarians)
3/4 C. Apple Juice without added sugar
1 ripe peeled banana, sliced
3 tbsp. Almond Meal
1 tsp. Sambal Oelek

Method;

In a large pan, melt the butter, add the onion and cook for about 5 minutes on medium low. Add the garlic, stir around and add the spices. Stir a couple of times. Add the rest of the ingredients. Bring to medium simmer and leave to cook for thirty minutes until everything is very tender. Turn off the heat. Blend with a hand blender until completely smooth.

Ingredients Crispy Pumpkin Seeds:

1/2 C. Pumpkin seeds
1 tsp. coconut oil
1 tsp. cajun seasoning
1 tsp. honey (use coconut sugar for vegans)

Method;

Heat a small frying pan over medium high heat. Add the oil. Add the seeds and toast tossing constantly for about three minutes. Add the remaining ingredients. Cook for an other minute. Transfer the seeds to a tray lined with baking parchment and let cool until ready to use.

Ingredients for the XXL Croutons;

1 baguette
1 – 2 tbsp. butter softened (use coconut oil for vegans/vegetarians)
4 – 6 slices thick cheese (use vegan or omit)

Method;

Preheat the grill of your oven.

Slice the baguette as diagonally as you can to get long slim pieces.

Butter the bottom of the slices and place on a lined baking tray. Cover with the cheese and grill in the middle rack of the oven until golden on top for about 5 minutes.

To serve, ladle some soup into a bowl or mug, sprinkle with the crispy pumpkin seeds a place a xxl crouton on top. Yum.

Enjoy!

Myra XO

High Fibre Health Bread

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Here is my go to bread, for daily use. Very high in fibre and super healthy. It’s a small compact loaf, but one slice is an equivalent to a normal sized slice of bread, only ten times healthier. Pure grains and goodness and very filling.

Makes 1 small loaf

Needed : 8 Inch x 4 Inch Loaf Pan

INGREDIENTS:

1 C. + 2 tbsp. milk of choice, warm about at 100 ° F
2 tsp. Yeast
1 tbsp. Organic Coconut Sugar
2 C. Dark Rye Flour
1 C. Plain Spelt Flour
1/4 C. Oat Fiber
1/4 C. Ground Flaxseed
1 tsp. Pink Himalayan Salt
2 tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 C. Cooked Rye or Organic Spelt Berries

INSTRUCTIONS:

In a bowl, mix the warm milk with the sugar, add the yeast and stir to dissolve. Let sit for 5 to 10 minutes until frothy. Add the olive oil.

In the bowl of your mixer fitted with the hook attachment, place the flours, the fibre and flax. Stir to mix a little.

When the yeast mixture is ready pour is slowly into the bowl with the flour. With the machine running on low. Once the yeast liquid is mixed in add the salt.

Knead for ten minutes on medium. The last minute add the whole cooked grains and mix in gently with the machine on low.

Turn out the dough, Knead a little and form in to a ball. Place in an oiled bowl and cover with oiled cling film. Let rise for at least two hours. Although is doesn’t rise much leave for this amount of time.

After this time, place the dough into the oiled baking tin, sprinkle over some oat fibre if you like. Cover loosely with oiled cling film and leave to rise again for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile pre heat the oven to 375 ° F / 190 C

Place the tin in the middle of the oven on a rack, bake for about 40 minutes. Tap to see if it sounds hollow after this time. Remove from oven and leave to cool completely before slicing.

Endive Gratin with Baked Apples, Blue cheese and Thyme

5 Replies

Serves 4 as a side dish

Who disliked Endives as a kid?… raise your hands….

Well I don’t know about you, but I really really disliked Endives when I was a child. Always prepared so very over cooked. Boiled and then rolled in some cheap ham and covered in cheese. It was bitter and the consistency was just aweful.

Thank goodness we have come a long way since then when it comes to being creative with endive. Really there is more than just Waldorf salad and the typical gratin.

I actually love this dish and some times I eat it with just some steamed new potatoes, it’s that satisfying. But I think it goes particularly well with white meats like chicken or pork.

Ingredients;

6 Large heads of Endive, about 1.5 lbs.

3 tbsp butter

2 tbsp. pine nuts

2 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced thin.

1 tablespoon fresh Thyme leafs

1/4 C. white wine

5 oz. blue cheese, 2 medium apples, peeled, core removed, cut in wedges

2 tbsp. honey

2 – 3 tbsp. pine nuts

Method;

In a large frying pan, melt one tablespoon of butter and when hot add the apples. Fry for about 5 minutes then add 1 tbsp. of honey, cook for another 3 to 5 minutes until golden brown. Transfer the apple slices to a plate and reserve.

Cut the endive in half lengthwise and remove bruised outer leafs if necessary. Slice away a small bit from the bottom.

In the same pan, add the remaining two tablespoons of butter. Add the endive cut side down and sprinkle over the thyme, season with salt and pepper.Cook for about 5 minutes before adding the garlic and the remaining honey, and turn them once in a while. Add the white wine. Depending on how thick they are, cook for about 10 to 15 minutes. Pierce with a knife to check if they are tender but still a little bit firm.

Turn on the grill.

Transfer the endive to a baking dish and gently place the baked apple wedges around the sides.

Cut the blue cheese in slices and divide over the endive. Sprinkle over the pine nuts.

Grill the endives for about 5 minutes until nice and melted and golden. Keep an eye on it!

Enjoy

Myra Xo

Not quite what you were looking for? How about a Beet Salad

Quinoa Tabbouléh with Chickpeas and Pomegranite Seeds

4 Replies

Serves 4 as a side

Quinoa is such a versatile grain, I love it! It’s cooked in minutes and basically you can do anything you like with it once it’s cooked. Plus point; it freezes really well too. Just put it in a zip lock bag in the freezer and scoop out what you need.

During the Summer, when it’s too warm to eat hot dishes I like making salads like these, where there is some sort of grain involved and you have your veggies and carbs in one dish.

Tabbouleh is a middle eastern dish usually made with Bulgur, a kind of dried cracked wheat, but I like to use Quinoa instead since it has a lot more protein, less carbs and more fibre. Also it’s Gluten free. Quinoa to me is a super grain, the seeds grow on large feather like branches and can be black, red or white. In Inca quinoa means “mother grain”, and I can see why.

However when you cook Quinoa it is very important that you rinse the seeds very well before cooking since they are covered in saponin, a bitter substance that works like a natural insect repellant for the plant.

Ingredients;

1 1/2 C. Quinoa
3 C. Stock, vegetable or chicken
1 can of chickpeas, drained
1/2 C. Pomegranite seeds
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup good olive oil
Himalayan salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 cup minced scallions, white and green parts
1 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
1 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and medium-diced

Method;

Cook the Quinoa according to package instructions or;

Wash the Quinoa thoroughly and put in a pan, add the stock. Bring to a gently boil and cook with the lid on the pan for about 10 – 12 minutes , taste and check to see if the Quinoa is done.

Place the Quinoa in a large bowl and let it cool before adding the chickpeas, pom seeds, scallions, cucumber, herbs, oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Toss and serve either cooled or at room temperature. Great with grilled meats!

Enjoy

Looking for more great recipes to try? Be sure to check out this Watermelon Salad

Ingredients Soup:

Method;

Ingredients Crispy Pumpkin Seeds:

Method;

Ingredients for the XXL Croutons;

Method;

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