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This is where I note my efforts as I try to recreate some old recipes. Most are taken from my small collection of handwritten recipe books which date from the late 1700's to around 1922. I also have a collection of old tatty old recipe books, well thumbed and heavily splashed from years of use. I love all of them.

The old-fashioned very stylised handwriting writing is sometimes difficult to decipher, measurements and cooking instructions are minimal, no tin sizes given. Luckily I enjoy a challenge. Just to complicate things I cook and bake on my wood-fired Rayburn, which can be... unpredictable.

I suspect this blog is less about the food and more about my passion for these lovely old books and the wonderful women who wrote them.


Tuesday, 20 September 2016

The Art of Soup



The demonstration and talk at the Little Bunting Village Hall was a great success  (Parsonage Cottage Blog) vegetables were chopped and beautiful artwork was created.   Everyone got to take their creation home with them, but that still left quite a heap of unused vegetable slices and shapes.



I couldn't let them all go to waste so some were fed to the hens.     The bulk of the vegetables just cried out to be made into soup - I just had to chop up a couple of onions, the rest had been done by Poppy.   Soon the soup was simmering on the hob.

Soup needs croutons, so I cubed some of the bread I had baked earlier in the week, drizzled it with olive oil and then popped the tray into the Rayburn for 20 minutes until they were golden and crisp.  
Add a little grated cheese and chopped spring onions to garnish the soup and there we have a cheap and nourishing meal, with plenty left for tomorrow.



So don't worry, Poppy, nothing was wasted.
xxx
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8 comments:

  1. local alien21 September 2016 at 06:13

    .Almost time for us to move from salads to soups. Yours looks delicious.

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    Replies
    1. Elaine21 September 2016 at 14:22

      Hi Linda, The cooler weather here has certainly turned my attention away from salads, which is a shame. Still, good homemade soups are also high on my list of favourite foods and at least they are simple to make!

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  2. Cro Magnon21 September 2016 at 07:28

    I've just begun to make soups again. My usual 'Compost Soup' was bolstered recently by the addition of beautiful stems of Swiss Chard (which I usually throw away). I just couldn't face putting them in my compost bucket; they gave the soup a rather 'earthy' flavour.

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    Replies
    1. Elaine21 September 2016 at 14:26

      Hi Cro, Swiss Chard is beautiful but we always prefer plain and simple spinach. Funnily enough, the hens do, too. Perhaps I should have called it Chicken Soup, since that is where the vegetables would have ended up!

      Delete
  3. local alien21 September 2016 at 12:30

    Swiss chard..I believe in NZ it is what we called silver beet. Not my favourite as a child 😣. Ooooh thundering all around us. I did go swimming this morning but that beach weather I think is over for a while.

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    Replies
    1. Elaine21 September 2016 at 14:27

      I hope that by now the sun is shining again. Enjoy the rest of your holiday!

      Delete
  4. Sol26 September 2016 at 19:05

    Poppy has some serious knife skills it all looks amazing!!! Be the soup was lovely.

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    Replies
    1. Elaine27 September 2016 at 15:10

      Hi Sol, I think everyone was impressed - that chopper gets used for slicing, cutting, chopping, peeling - it is extremely sharp and very heavy. It made us all watch her fingers very carefully.

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