Soup and Bread

Yum! Yum! What a great rainy day summer combination for lunch we came up with the other day. While our garden has been long since forgotten, Russell's garden across the road has been providing him with more than he can eat so we are the lucky recipients of fresh grown veggies. The other day he sent home a couple of bags with some broccoli and cauliflower in it. I scrounged around through the fridge and found a jar of cheese sauce so decided to make a creamy, cheesy vegetable soup. Now when I cook I dump and pour so you may have to tweak this very casual recipe for yourselves, but it was delicious!

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Wash and cut up your veggies, then boil or steam. I used broccoli, cauliflower, peeled carrots (I peel them rather than chunk them) and onion. I like to cook my veggies in chicken broth (just add some boulion cubes if you don't have the real thing) for a little extra flavor for soups. Drain the liquid, saving it to add back to your soup. Make a rue in a large kettle. Melt butter (1/2 stick??) over medium heat then add flour (1/2 cup??) until you have a nice gooey glob. Then with a heavy whisk start adding milk slowly while constantly mixing. Continue to add milk as the mixture thickens, then switching to the broth once you have it as creamy as you would like. If you thin down your base too much just mix some flour and milk in a separate bowl and add slowly back to your pot while mixing. As soon as you have enough base at the thickness you want add the cheese sauce to taste and the veggies and let simmer while you make your naan bread.

You've never had naan bread?? You are in for a treat then my friend! It is a very traditional Indian bread served with everything. When we were waiting for Micah to come home I had found a great Indian cook book and thought I would become a chef extraordinaire and immerse these children in the art of cooking authentic Indian food. Well I have now mastered naan bread (how we like it anyway) and that's about all. Yummy! It was a great addition to this meal and we couldn't get enough of it, especially to dip it into the soup.

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Naan Bread, courtesy of The Best ever Indian cookbook

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Ingredients:

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp fresh yeast

2/3 cup warm water

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 tbsp ghee (butter)

1 tsp salt

1 tsp poppy seeds (I like to use sesame seeds)

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*Place the sugar and yeast in a small bowl, add the warm water and mix well until the yeast has dissolved. Let it set for 10 minutes or until the mixture is frothy.

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*Place the flour in a large bowl and add the ghee and salt then pour in the yeast mixture. Mix to form a dough, adding more water if needed. Turn out onto a lightly floured counter and knead for 5 minutes or until smooth. Return the dough to the bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm place for 1 1/2 hours or until it has doubled in size (if I am in a hurry or impatient I have skipped this rising).

*Preheat the broiler to high and grease a cookie sheet. Return the dough to the floured counter and knead for 2 minutes. Break off small balls with your hand and pat them into circles. *Place the circles onto your cookie sheet and cook under a very hot broiler, turning to brown each side. Brush with melted butter on each side and sprinkle with poppy (or sesame) seed. Serve them hot and enjoy!