Summer Tomato Soup

Hello Friends!

It's a very busy time of year, the tourists are in town and for those of us who work in the tourist industry it's Go! Go! Go! until the middle of September.  It's so easy to grab a ready meal, a quick snack, or rely on sandwiches as finding time to eat a healthy, balanced diet, and cook delicious food is something that is often a bit of a struggle during the busy summer months, and if I am honest, after a long day on my feet the last thing I want to be doing is standing in the kitchen prepping supper and tomorrow's lunch box.

I had to do a bit of a fridge clearing out a day or two ago, and as ever there were plenty of things nearing or even past their best, so here's what I came up with to avoid wasting a glut of cherry and other small tomatoes.  I have to say it's quite possibly one of the best soups I have ever made.

I found about 300 gr, or about 10 oz, of very ripe tomatoes in the salad drawer in the fridge.  Far too many to eat, and far too ripe to think about keeping any longer, so here's what I did:

I placed a layer of fresh basil in the bottom of a shallow Pyrex casserole, big enough to take the tomatoes in a single layer. I drizzled them very lightly with olive oil, and seasoned with freshly ground salt and black pepper, with a teaspoon of Balsamic vinegar and a teaspoon of sugar sprinkled over. I roasted them on Gas Mark 7 for about 25 minutes until they had started to caramelise. I removed the basil and cooled the tomatoes before putting in the fridge.  Today, I tipped them into my Ninja goblet, added the juice of a freshly squeezed, large orange and blitzed to a puree.  I warmed it through in a saucepan, seasoned with a little more freshly ground black pepper {to me there are few seasonings more special than freshly ground black pepper} a sprinkling of grated Parmesan, and a sprig of fresh basil to garnish.

Can I say it was utterly, completely, and totally lip smacking? Perfect for a light, summer lunch if you have a glut of tomatoes too, although it only made a small bowlful.  I am sure it could have been diluted to serve two, but then all that delicious oven roasted tomato goodness would also have been diluted, and tomatoes are so good for us.

I always like to play with my food, but this is one recipe I don't think I want to play with, and will definitely be making again, very soon. Fresh tomatoes and herbs only, and I don't think I will even consider adding onions or garlic, or any other tweaks to the seasonings.

Let me know if you try it, and if so, I do hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Until next time
Deborah



p.s. I have to say my Ninja food processor is one of the best gadgets I have ever bought, and I have owned mine now for two years and I think I have used it nearly every day since I got it home. It wasn't cheap, but oh, my! how it has proved it's value in the food preparation in my kitchen.

Glam Rock Rules the Garden

Hello Friends!

There’s been a proper mixed bag of weather in the Shire of late!  After the bad weather I spoke about in my last entry {two weeks ago ~ where does the time go?} we had our summer! Parts of the UK had heatwave conditions, but here in the west it was not unbearable, as it was tempered by the now nearly constant sea mists that lightly swirl around the high cliffs, feeding from a deeper sea fog that sits further out to sea and helps keep us cool most of the time. So thankful!  I know that 70 degrees is not hot, but I can no longer take the high 90’s that I could in my youth!  The last few days have been quite overcast with outbreaks of rain, and just generally dreich. We get what we get, we can’t do much about it, but we still love to chat about the weather, don’t we?

Since we last chatted, we’ve had the Summer Solstice. Each year, I long for, and dread, this day in equal measures, for I love the long days that stretch into the late, balmy evenings of early summer, but I also do not look forward to the darker, longer evenings as night draws slowly in as we lose daylight in our journey towards autumn and winter. Once we get there it is not quite as bad as it seems looking at it from a distance, for there is something quite comforting about closing out the night as we draw the heavy drapes across the windows, snuggle by the cosy fire, and sip on hot chocolate while reading our favourite books and magazines. Then, in January, as the days are once again lengthening, the seed catalogues start to drop through the letter boxes, excitement mounts, and we start to plan our gardens once again as the wheel of the year continues to turn.

Here are a few of the blooms that survived the nasty weather of two weeks ago and have recovered in the few days of summer since {details under each one} ~~~ I'm always amazed at how nature recovers ~~~

Field Poppies ~ I'm honoured they picked my garden!

Glam Rock Hydrangea ~ new bloom which has a very green tint to the centre

Glam Rock blooms at different stages, I'm wondering what the final colour will be!

Glam Rock is supposed to transition in colour and end up a vivid blue ~ still waiting to see some blue!

Pink Petunia

A beautiful, unusual striped Verbena

Mixed pot of annuals ~ seeds to be harvested!

I think this is called an Echeveria. It looks as if there are blooms getting ready! 

Finally, I found a few straggling succulents in a pot, so I put this terracotta plant pot tower together. The found succulents are in the bottom two tiers, and I bought a new one at the local, small independent garden centre that specialises in perennials, herbs, succulents and more unusual plants. I went back and bought three more the following day as I have a plan for them too ~~~

It does come as quite a shock to the system, though, to be eating my favourite comfort food of a bowl of hot tomato soup with a summer twist of fresh picked basil and a meltingly delicious grilled Cheddar cheese sandwich made with Caerfai Organic Cheddar cheese in July. This is normally my winter comfort food, so it is strange to be cold enough in summer for this delight, but I’m all for it.

Speaking of comfort food, a favourite breakfast of mine is “Eggy Bread” or French Toast.  I love taking two organic, free range eggs and whisking them really well, then soaking two slices of Sourdough bread until all the egg is absorbed, and dropping them into my sizzling cast iron pan, with just a smidge of melted butter for flavour. I adore my cast iron pans, and properly seasoned they are the healthy alternative to non stick cooking.  You can cook pretty much anything in them, and I love that they go from the stove top to the oven as needed. I’ve baked and cooked pretty much everything in them, and I find food tastes amazing when cooked in cast iron pans. Even high sugar foods, such as sweet onions or carrots don't stick, and Halloumi cooks to caramelised perfection without leaving any behind in the pan. Well cared for pans can be handed down for generations, so even though they can be a bit expensive at first, in the long run they are an investment to cherish.  

A quick and simple healthy, low fat stir fry with tofu and vegetables

breakfast sizzling in the pan

home made cinnamon and brown sugar

perfectly cooked without sticking one scrap

sprinkled with cinnamon sugar, gently melting in the heat

ready to eat!

So, Dear Friends ~~~
Until next time ~~~
~~~Deborah xo