'Tis the season to be toasty with some home made soups

As Autumn brings in the cool, crisp air nothing quite warms the cockles of your heart like a gorgeous home made soup. Today I bring you two recipes. 

The first is an innovative soup I came across, called beetroot leaf soup. It's innovative because you are not wasting something that ordinarily would be thrown away. Beetroot leaves are packed with essential vitamins and minerals. So why not give this recipe a go?

The next is the reliable pumpkin soup. So simple to make and yet so consistently delicious. 

Beetroot Leaf Soup

Ingredients: 

• 2 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 celery sticks, chopped
• 1 carrot, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped finely
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• beetroot leaves, approx 10-12 leaves with a small segment of the stalk
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 sprig of thyme
• 1 litre vegetable stock
• 1 tin chopped tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons tomato puree/passata 

Method:

1. Heat the oil in a saucepan. Add the onions and soften. Then add the celery and carrots. Allow to soften slightly. 
2. Add cumin, garlic and balsamic vinegar. Allow the vinegar to evaporate.
3. Add the beetroot leaves and allow to wilt. Add the salt and pepper.
4. Add the tomato tin and puree.
5. Bring to the boil and then reduce and simmer until all vegetables are soft.  This will take approx 20 mins.
6. Blend the ingredients until it forms a smooth soup. Add additional salt and pepper if required.

Pumpkin Soup

Ingredients: 

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 brown onion, chopped
• 2 teaspoon cumin
• 1 butternut pumpkin (approx 1 kg)
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 1 garlic, chopped finely
• European style natural yogurt - optional
• Dukkah- optional

Method: 

1. Heat the oil in a saucepan. Add the onions and stir until golden.
2. Add cumin and stir through the onions.
3. Add the pumpkin and coat in the onion mixture.
4. Add stock.
5. Simmer until the pumpkin is soft. This should take approx 20 mins. 
6. Blend the ingredients until the soup is smooth.
7. I like to serve this with a dollop of natural yogurt and dukkah, which adds creaminess and texture to the soup.

Beetroot and Wasabi Relish

Betroot is now in season and the perfect time to try some interesting recipes! If you have never cooked beetroot at home its quite the experience. My advice is be careful because the red dye will go everywhere!! But I guarantee its well worth the effort.

A fresh beetroot has a completely different flavour and texture to that of tinned beetroot.  As Indira Naidoo quoted in her cookbook, The Edible Balcony "[beetroot] has a far superior texture and taste than those spongy slices soaked in acid."

So why not give this recipe from Indira Naidoo's book a try? Its quick and full of delicious earthy flavours:

Ingredients:

• 4 medium sized beetroot, washed and the stalk trimmed
• 1/4 cup creme fraiche
• 1 tablepsoon wasabi paste
• 1 tablepsoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• Freshly ground salt and pepper

Method:

1. Cook the beetroot over high heat over until soft. Drain and set aside until cool enough to handle. Once cooled, remove the skins.
2. Place the beetroot with all the remaining ingredients and pulse in your food processor until it comes to a rough paste.

It's a fantastic recipe to eat as part of a vegetarian meal. We had ours with pide bread, good quality olive oil, dukah, tabouli and cutlets. 

The Cut Bar & Grill

Since I posted a great little recipe about beef below, I thought it would be a timely time to share my experience eating at the Cut in Circular Quay. In my view, this is one of the best "meaty" restaurants in Sydney,  the dishes are varied and the flavours amazing. So keep this one handy next time your boyfriend/hubby has his meat craving;) Unlike a normal steak house, the restaurant is more up market.  It's dimly lit restaurant with rustic wooden furniture. The staff are friendly and attentive.

We began our entrees and the steak tartare was definitely one of the highlights for me.  You can see below how beautifully it is served. The best part is you can mix as little or as much of the condiments as you like. The meat melts in your mouth and the pickles, capers, and red onions add a delicious contrast, both in flavour and texture.



The second entree was the kingfish cerviche, which I must admit is a little deviation from the meat menu, but I promise our mains are "meaty"! The cured fish was delicious and dressed with radish and baby herbs. It was a pungent dish the leaves you salivating and ready for the next course. 

My hubby had the Wagu steak, cooked medium rare.  As you can see The Cut is all about the meat, there is no unnecessary dressings. Just mouth wateringly tender beef cooked to perfection.  

I had the roast beef topped with a spicy Chimmichurri  dressing.  The roast beef coming to the table is quite the spectacle as it is hand carved right in front of you.

Next time you feel like a good quality piece of beef, full of flavour then you really must try The Cut. 

Sichuan Style steamed beef

We have all heard about stir frying beef, braising beef, slow cooking beef and even eating raw beef in dishes like steak tartare. But have you ever considered steaming your beef?

The idea sounds very strange but I came across a fantastic recipe from the Chinese Guru himself, Mr Neil Perry. This dish will make you think about the way you can cook meats in a whole new way.

Steamed beef is done in the same way you would steam fish.  It requires the beef to be cut very thinly and then placed in a bamboo steamer.  The result is mouth wateringly tender beef.  

Ingredients:

For the beef marinade

• 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon fermented black beans (you can buy this in a packet from your Asian grocer and it can be kept in the fridge once opened)
• 2 tablespoon shaoxing
• 1 tablespoon hot bean paste
• 1/2 teaspoon Sichuan peppercorns
• 1 tablespoon vegetable/peanut oil

For the remaining dish

• 450g porterhouse steak, cut into thin strips
• 200g ground roast rice (I will show you how to do this below)
• 4 tablespoons water
• 2 tablespoons chopped coriander
• 2 spring onions, chopped diagonally
• 2 teaspoons sesame oil

Method:

1. To make the marinade mix the soy sauce, black means, shaoxing, bean paste, the freshly ground Sichuan peppercorns and peanut oil. Add this to the steak and leave to marinade for approximately 30 mins.

       

2. The next step is to prepare the ground roast rice.  To do this, place the rice in a heavy based saucepan. Dry roast until the rice becomes opaque but not coloured.  You can use jasmine rice or I like to use Basmati rice. The cool slightly and ground using a mortar and pestle.

3. Add the ground roast rice and mix with the marinated steak. Add the 4 tablespoons water.

4. Place the strips of steak on the bamboo steamer, cover with the lid and steam for approximately 20 mins on a low to medium heat. 
5. Add the coriander and spring onions and steam for a further minute.
6. Remove from the heat and drizzle with sesame oil.