Angela Day
CHEESY CAULIFLOWER
Serves 4
30ml olive oil
1 onion, chopped
700-800g cauliflower, broken into florets
1 large potato, peeled and diced
1 litre of vegetable stock
500ml milk
salt and pepper
100g grated cheddar cheese for serving
croutons for serving
chopped chives for serving
Heat the oil in a pot and gently fry the onion until soft.
Add the cauliflower, potato, stock, milk and seasoning. Simmer, covered, for 30 to 40 minutes, until the potatoes are soft. Cool slightly and purée with a hand blender until smooth. Serve piping hot with a handful of grated cheese and croutons and sprinkled with chives.
PEA AND HAM
Serves 6-8
30ml olive oil
2 onions, chopped
3 stalks of celery, chopped
2-3 carrots, diced
10ml chopped garlic
2 litres of water
1kg smoked ham hock, well rinsed
500ml split green peas
salt and pepper
250ml frozen peas
Heat the oil in a large pot and fry the onion, celery and carrots until soft. Add the garlic and cook for a minute.
Add the water and the hock, making sure the meat is submerged. Add the split peas and bring to the boil. Simmer covered for 2 to 3 hours or until the meat falls off the bone and the peas are tender. Remove the hock from the soup and when cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the bone and shred. Discard the bone and skin. Blend the soup until smooth. Return the meat to the soup and season to taste. If the soup is not thick enough, simmer until reduced to your liking. Add the frozen peas and simmer until they are cooked. Serve with crusty bread. This recipe is perfect to cook in a slow cooker or a pressure cooker.
SPICY BUTTERNUT AND CHICKPEA
Serves 4-6
45ml olive oil
1-2 leeks, sliced
10ml chopped garlic
5ml chopped ginger
1 red chili, seeded and chopped
1 cinnamon stick
3ml ground cumin
3ml ground coriander
2 carrots, grated
500g butternut, chopped
400g can of chickpeas, drained
1 litre of chicken or vegetable stock
grated rind of 1 orange
salt and pepper to taste
30ml chopped coriander
Heat the oil and fry the leeks, garlic, ginger and chili until soft. Add the cinnamon, cumin and coriander and cook for a minute. Add the carrots, butternut, chickpeas and stock and bring to the boil.
Cover and simmer for about 30-40 minutes until the butternut is soft. Remove the cinnamon stick and purée soup using a hand blender or a liquidiser. Add rind and season. Serve sprinkled with coriander.
MINESTRONE
Serves 4-6
15ml olive oil
4 rashers of bacon, chopped
1 onion, chopped
10ml chopped garlic
1-2 stalks of celery, chopped
1-2 carrots, grated
2-3 courgettes, sliced
1-2 potatoes, diced
1.5 litres of beef or vegetable stock
400g can of chopped tomatoes
30ml tomato paste
250ml small pasta
400g can of cannellini beans, drained
125ml frozen peas
salt and pepper
Parmesan crisps or grated Parmesan cheese to serveIn a saucepan, heat the oil and fry the bacon for a few minutes. Add the onion, garlic, celery, carrots, courgettes and potatoes. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until the onion is soft.
Add the stock, tomatoes and tomato paste and bring to the boil.
Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for about 30 minutes until the vegetables are tender.
Add the pasta and beans and cook until the pasta is soft. Add the peas and cook for another five minutes. Season well and serve with grated Parmesan cheese or a Parmesan crisp.
PARMESAN CRISP: Put mounds of about 25ml grated Parmesan cheese on to a baking tray lined with non-stick baking paper and bake at 180ºC for five to 10 minutes until the cheese melts and turns light golden brown. Leave to cool on the tray and then carefully lift off.
* The Angela Day cookery column is published in The Star and Saturday Star, the Cape Argus, the Daily News and the Pretoria News.