Cucumber-Almond Soup

As a kid, I hated eating cucumber and did not touch them for several years. I felt they had no flavor or anything to offer to my sophisticated palette :P But then, as we grow, we become wise(r) :D and grow in size physically, literally and mentally. And sometimes, the rate of your physical growth demands you eat cucumbers. Only cucumbers, at that ;) That is how I started eating cucumber and have grown to like the fruit (?)

So the dieting mind of mine was elated to see a different version of the regular Raita in Suganya's blog - Tasty Palettes. It seemed rich, what with almonds and I decided that this was what I wanted to try from Sug's blog. Its a different thing that I've made the Gnocchi, the mushroom pizza and all kinds of other stuff from her blog. But if anything helped me keep track of my diet, it was this cucumber soup :) I made a couple of changes to it, though. I added some red onions and coriander or cilantro to just jazz it up! And boy, do I regret not eating cucumber all these years or what!

This one goes out to the Tried and Tasted- Tasty Palettes event hosted by Curry Leaf this time around. The event was started by Zlamushka of Zlamushka's Spicy Kitchen. Thank you Sug, for this simple recipe. It made my day on a really hot, boring afternoon! I made some sweet potato crisps to go with it and it looked so pretty, that I decided to showcase that too.

Since this time, AFAM is exploring the potential of cucumber, this dish is also participating in the AFAM - Cucumber event held at Neha's Tasty Recipes and conceptualized by Maheshwari of 'Beyond the Usual' fame! Almonds...hmm..I saw a nutty event somewhere. Hmm..here! This one makes its way to you too, JZ!

Take it away, ladies. It was worth it :) And I swear, I didn't think of all these events when I made this. I made this purely because the cucumbers were rotting, and it was hot and I was just way too bored to cook. I hope my pictures have done justice to Suganya's fantastic pictures!

P.S - I'm a linker par excellence no?

Squash soup :)

Every visit to the Farmer's Market is a much-awaited and much-dreaded weekend for me because A's face changes, his mouth spreads wide into a grin on seeing them - he did not smile this much even at our wedding. He starts ogling at them, touching them and feels them lovingly. I hate them. I walk away hurt. His eyes narrow as I try to ignore his atrocious behaviour in front of everyone. He gets back at me. He gets back at me by holding them in his hand. Pays hard-earned money for them. Uses my beloved oven and makes them into one of favourite meals - soup. The only reason I dread the Farmer's Market is because of the unique relationship between A and the myriad of squashes available there.

A loves to cook and he loves to give surprises. Combine both, and I have a gala :D So, it was my birthday last weekend according to the Hindu calendar and my husband cooked the WHOLE day for me :D Among the stuff made were these Pesto rolls, an ice cream cake whose recipe he's promised to post soon and some creamy squash soup for dinner. I love this soup though I hate squash and A *loves* squash as is obvious!

It is super simple to make and extremely, extremely tasty. I love it and we make it quite often. In fact, the rule at home now is that we should use squash only in that form :) Here is the recipe for all you soup connoisseurs.



Ingredients

1 Acorn squash

1 Butternut squash

1 tbsp heavy cream

1 tbsp butter1 tbsp olive oil+extra for brushing.

1/4 tsp crushed Oregano
1/4 tsp red chilli powder
1/4 tsp paprika powder
Pinch of Nutmeg
Pinch of Tarragon
Salt to taste
Crushed peppercorn to taste.
Water as needed

1. Preheat the oven to 425F.

2. Cut each squash into quarters. Brush them with olive oil and let them soften in the oven till tender, about 40-45 mins.

3. Using a spoon, remove the seeds and then collect all the tender pulp in a dish. Allow to cool for 10-15 mins.

4. Puree the pulp in a mixer. Add water as needed. The puree should be smooth and thick.

5. In a pan, heat olive oil on medium heat. When the oil is semi-hot, add Oregano and Tarragon. Stir to mix.

6. Bring the heat to medium-low and add the squash puree.

7. Add the remaining seasonings (salt, paprika, peppercorn, chilli powder, nutmeg).

8. Cook for 5-10 mins and then add the cream and butter. Cook for a few more minutes till you steady release of bubbles. I actually heard 'pops' because my soup was pretty thick :)

9. Remove from the gas and have it HOT!!! The sour cream in the picture seen below is purely for garnishing....or is it ;) ?

We had our soup with some baguette smeared with the leftover pesto, drizzled with grated mozzarella and then toasted in the oven at 375C for 10 mins till the cheese melted. Good stuff.....good times :)