Musings

Coffee and a chat, anyone?

Suzanne

“I’m late, I’m late! For a very important date! No time to say ‘hello, goodbye,’ I’m late, I’m late, I’m late!”

The White Rabbit – Alice in Wonderland

Just like the white rabbit I am very late to a vitual teaparty at Su’s blog Zimmerbitch – check it all out and her other guests via HERE. I must point out that being late is very unusual for me as I tend to be early for a date than late.

First things first – Soup Anyone?

Something different and not expected at a tea party. As I live in the same hemisphere as Su the blogger [Zimmerbitch], I too will introduce you to another winter soup. A favourite one for this time of year for us is Cauliflower Soup. Hold on don’t dismiss this standard white bundle of florets. This particular recipe packs a punch and tastes like cheese macaroni for adults. Amazingly enough, there is no cheese in it only added on bread or if you must into the soup. Mustard accompanies the cauliflower, three varieties to be precise. Interested? Then, check out the below recipe.

Cauliflower Soup

INGREDIENTS
1 large brown onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, finely sliced
1 tablespoon dry mustard powder
1 head cauliflower, cut into florets
4 large potatoes, peeled and diced
1 litre light chicken stock or water
Salt to taste
2 tablespoons Dijon and 2 tablespoons wholegrain mustard
Freshly cracked black pepper
4 slices French stick, ciabatta or sourdough , toasted
Grated cheddar or cheese of your choice – I use Sheep feta cheese

METHOD
1. Place oil in a large saucepan then add the onion and garlic. Fry until translucent. Sprinkle the mustard powder over and stir in the cauliflower and potatoes. Pour in the stock and milk. Cover, bring to a gentle simmer and cook until the potato is tender, adding more liquid if necessary.

2. When the vegetables are cooked, remove from the liquid, purée with salt to taste and the mustard. Return to the saucepan and bring back to heat, stirring gently. Serve in bowls with a sprinkling of freshly cracked pepper.

3. Toast the cheese-topped bread under a hot grill just before serving.

How about a Muffin or a Blissball or two?

If I were to be crowned a queen of a sweet, then I would be Queen Muffin as I am known to bake a batch or two during the colder months. As we are a non-dairy household, I will also bring along a quantity of Blissballs that are petite enough for those who want a small bite to eat. So, that is what I shall bring to Su’s Virtual Teaparty, a cup of soup if coffee isn’t your thing, Pumpkin & Turmeric Muffins with a few Blissballs. Of course, not forgetting some dark, brooding coffee as I am not a major tea drinker. In the afternoon, I am partial to a herbal tea or a cup of black Earl Grey tea.

What are you waiting for? Let’s head to Su’s as I hear it’s a roaring success with international guests from Portugal, Germany and closer to home, Australia.

Published by Suzanne

Travel and Life Musings from New Zealand and Beyond. . . . . . .

38 thoughts on “Coffee and a chat, anyone?”

    1. Pumpkin is my favourite, I was making the cauliflower soup for dinner hence writing about it. I like unusual combinations and one soup that’s really lovely is kumera and celery.

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    1. I could easily go back to being a vegetarian though not sure I could get Les to be totally vegetarian. His cancer specialist suggested beef for iron though his platelets are down whether he eats meat or not!

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  5. I’ve never had cauliflower soup before so I’d really love a cup!! And you can never go wrong with muffins. 😉 Thanks for the recipe and the shout out, Suzanne! 😀

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  6. I love homemade soups, and tried a cauliflower one this year, with edame beans, avocado and spring onions as a garnish. Quite nice but not as tasty as broccoli and Stilton 😋

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    1. How we miss those stilton cheeses!. Yes, I have made broccoli and stilton soup when we were in the UK. You’re right, it is far superior to the cauliflower one. I do like the idea of the edamame beans, avocado and spring ones as a topping. I think I will make that one up since we don’t eat dairy now.

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  9. The soup sounds scrummy! Though you will appreciate it’s not really soup weather here but I shall keep this one on the back burner. Mick can’t eat cheese so he’ll have butter on his toast or just dunk the bread in his soup (sssh- we both have that awful habit too! 🙂 🙂 ) Thanks for the link, hon. Have a good weekend!

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      1. You guessed right, thought you would. 😉
        Not looking good for going back to Italy this year. Our illustrious leader announced yesterday that he wants Australians to stay in our country to spend money here and not OS, although NZ is OK.

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        1. Wasn’t too hard a guess 🙂 Not sure whether NZ wants anymore visitors than necessary due to 2 new cases from visitors. Strange times and it’s certainly making life hard for many.

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  12. Pingback: Teatime in the blogosphere | Zimmerbitch

    1. Well, in the good old days a cheese sauce was made to go occasionally with cauliflower. Now, that we don’t have dairy this is the next best thing. Please note, I never follow recipes and always add more spice etc than normal.

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      1. A woman after my own heart!

        I’m often asked for recipes and constantly have to confess that the food I’ve just served bears something of a resemblance to the recipe, but I’ve changed a few things ….

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        1. Haha, yes I can relate to being asked for a recipe and unable to give the precise ingredients or measurements. Les has mentioned on numerous occasions that he loved a particular dish and looked wistfully at me, knowing that it won’t be the exact dish when I repeat it.

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    1. Not hard at all, just messy and fiddly to create. Making bars less so but mine have never turned out as well as the blissballs.
      I find soups are a good way to eat plenty of vegetables during winter.

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