Cream of tomato, celery, basil soup
Ingredients:
One diced onion; four celery sticks; two oz of butter; two tablespoons of cream flour; one and a half pints of vegetable stock; bouquet garni; salt; pepper; fresh basil leaves; 15 large tomatoes or one large tin of chopped tomatoes. If you want to thin the soup you can add one dessert spoon of arrowroot and two to three tablespoons of cold water.
Method:
Melt the butter in saucepan. Add onions, carrots, and celery and cook gently for five to seven minutes. Take away from heat and stir in flour, tomatoes, juice, and stock. Bring to the boil, add bouquet garni and season to taste. Simmer for 30 minutes. Take out the bouquet garni and liquidise the soup. If soup is too thin thicken with arrowroot and add basil herbs and ribbon of cream.
Indian prawns with spinach
Ingredients:
8oz prawns; 6oz frozen spinach; 125ml oil; half tablespoon of onion seeds or 4oz finely chopped onion; one tablespoon of fresh ginger root finely chopped; one tablespoon of fresh crushed garlic; one tablespoon of chilli powder; one tablespoon of salt and 6oz of tomatoes cut in quarters.
Method:
Place prawns in a bowl of cold water and set aside to defrost thoroughly. If using frozen spinach make sure it is thawed and squeezed dry before use. Heat oil in a large frying pan and add mustard seed and onion. Reduce heat, add tomatoes, spinach, ginger, garlic and chilli powder to pan. Add prawns to mixture, cover, and simmer over low heat for about seven minutes. Transfer to serving dish. Serve hot and garnished.
Vanilla Panna Cotta with tropical fruit smoothie
Ingredients:
One pint of double cream; 50g of caster sugar; one to two vanilla pods split lengthways; three gelatine and two tablespoons of cold water.
For the smoothie—two bananas; 150g strawberries; 150g mango; 250mls of orange juice; two tablespoons of honey and two tablespoons of lemon juice.
Method:
For the Panna Cotta—Put the cream into a heavy bottomed saucepan with the split vanilla pods and sugar. Put on a low heat and bring to the simmering stage. Meanwhile soak the leaves of gelatine in the cold water. Remove water and pour the cream into the gelatine and mix until the gelatine is dissolved. Remove the vanilla pods and pour into moulds. When cold, cover, and refrigerate until set.
For the smoothie—chop up all the fruit into small chunks and place on a tray and freeze for two hours. Remove and blend all ingredients until smooth.
Remove the Panna Cotta from the mould and serve in a shallow bowl surrounded by the smoothie. Garnish with a spring of mint.
