Tuscan bean soup with the best croûtons I've ever made

When I told Joao I was making this soup he made his usual “eeeew” face and said: “I hate white beans”. I immediately thought “you hate just about everything” but since I was in a very good mood I kept on cooking and singing ("Breakfast in America" was stuck in my head that day).

The hubby did not eat the soup but went crazy for the croûtons – and indeed they were delicious. I had no idea that croûtons made in a frying pan could be so good. He ended up eating almost all of them – I should have told him “no soup, no croûtons”, but I didn’t. I’m such a softie. :)

Tuscan bean soup
from the always gorgeous and delicious Australian Gourmet Traveller

Soup:
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 leeks, white parts only, finely chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
400g dried white beans, soaked overnight in cold water, drained
5 cups (1.2l) vegetable or chicken stock
1 ¼ cups (300ml) heavy cream
salt and freshly ground black pepper
extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling

Croûtons:
1/3 cup (80ml) olive oil
150g day-old ciabatta loaf – or your favorite bread – cut into rough cubes

Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat, add leek, onion and garlic and sauté until tender (8-10 minutes). Add beans and stock, bring to the boil, then cook over low-medium heat until beans are very tender (30-45 minutes; add more stock if beans become too dry).
Meanwhile, for croûtons, heat olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat, add ciabatta and stir frequently until golden and crisp (2-4 minutes), then set aside on absorbent paper to drain.
Transfer bean mixture to a food processor or blender and process, in batches, with cream until smooth.
Season to taste and serve hot, drizzled with extra-virgin olive oil and scattered with croûtons.

Serves 6

Little almond crostate with roast pears

Spring is here! It’s time to say goodbye to my beloved pears, apples and strawberries (I know that sounds bizarre to some of you but strawberry season here is in the winter). That’s fine: mangoes and watermelons arrive to make me happy – and stone fruit is just around the corner.

One last pear recipe to celebrate the end of winter while I search for recipes with a spring feeling... :)

Little almond crostate with roast pears
slightly adapted from the always gorgeous Australian Gourmet Traveller

Pastry (almond pasta frolla):
60g natural almonds
180g all purpose flour
100g unsalted butter, cold and coarsely chopped
60g icing sugar, sifted
finely grated zest of 1 lemon
pinch of salt
1 egg + 1 egg yolk, lightly beaten

Almond cream:
2/3 cup (160ml) whole milk
3 pieces lemon zest, removed with a vegetable peeler
2 egg yolks
½ cup (100g) superfine sugar
50g unsalted butter, softened
½ cup (50g) almond meal
1 teaspoon dark rum

Pears:
8 small ripe pears, such as Corella, halved, core removed with a melon baller – I used very small pears called “Ercolini”
¾ cup (150g) superfine sugar
finely grated zest and juice of 2 lemons
¼ cup (56g) unsalted butter, coarsely chopped

Start with the pastry (almond pasta frolla): process almonds and 50g flour in a food processor until finely ground. Add butter, sugar, zest, remaining flour and salt, process until fine crumbs form. Add egg mixture, process until mixture just comes together, turn onto a lightly floured surface, and knead lightly until smooth. Form dough into a disk and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate to rest (1-2 hours).

Meanwhile, prepare the almond cream: bring milk and zest to the simmer over medium-high heat. Whisk yolks and ¼ cup (50g) of the sugar in a bowl to dissolve sugar. Add milk mixture, whisk to combine, return to pan, whisking continuously until thick and smooth (2-3 minutes), then remove zest and cool completely. Beat butter and remaining ¼ cup (50g) sugar in an electric mixer until pale and fluffy (1-2 minutes), add almond meal, rum and cooled custard, set aside at room temperature.

Now, the pears: preheat oven to 180°C/350°F. Place pears, cut-side up, in a roasting pan that fits pears snugly. Scatter with sugar and lemon zest, drizzle with lemon juice and dot with butter, making sure to include one in each cavity. Roast, basting occasionally, until pears are tender and edges are golden (35-40 minutes). Keep warm.
Bake the tartlets: lightly butter eight 9cm-diameter tart pans. Divide pastry into eight pieces. Working with one piece at a time, and keeping other pieces refrigerated, roll on between two pieces of lightly floured baking paper into 3mm-thick rounds and line the prepared pans with them. Prick pastry all over with a small fork. Divide almond cream among tartlet and bake until golden (35-40 minutes). Serve warm or at room temperature with roast pears and syrup.
Crostate are best eaten on day of making.

Makes 8 – I halved the recipe above, used 9cm tartlet pans and still got 6 tartlets

Apple and lemon cakes

No inspiration for today’s post. Not one ounce of it. But please do not let that keep you from baking these cakes: they’re delicious and oh, so tender.

Apple and lemon cakes
adapted from Donna Hay’s apricot cakes

125g unsalted butter, softened
1 cup + 1 ½ tablespoons (218g) granulated sugar + a little extra for sprinkling
finely grated zest of 2 lemons
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 eggs
1 ½ cups (210g) all purpose flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
pinch of salt
1 large apple

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Butter six 1-cup (240ml) capacity mini cake pans.
Place butter, sugar, lemon zest and vanilla in the large bowl of an electric mixer and beat until light and fluffy. Add the juice, then the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape the sides of the bowl.
Sift the flour, baking powder and salt over the mixture in the bowl and stir to combine.
Divide batter equally among the prepared pans.
Slice the apple in half, remove the core and seeds, then slice each half in 9 thin wedges. Arrange 3 slices over each cake. Sprinkle with the extra sugar. Bake 20-25 minutes or until risen and golden and a skewer inserted in the center of the cakes comes out clean. Cool in the pans, over a wire rack, for 15 minutes, then carefully unmold. Cool completely over the wire rack.

Makes 6

Carrot and apricot croquettes and a little white lie

I might be a cookbook junkie but certain cookbooks don’t appeal to me – I would never buy this book, for example. Never. I hate the idea of deceiving kids in order to make them eat veggies and fruit. They should eat good food and be aware of that. They should know what beetroots and carrots and eggplants look and taste like. That’s how my mom fed me as a kid and how I fed my sister when she was little.

But life is full of surprises and I ended up marrying a picky eater. Yes, go ahead and laugh now. :)
Therefore, when he asked me which ingredients there were in these croquettes, I lied. I LIED, people. I did not tell him there were dried apricots in it. No, sir. Just plain carrots and a pinch of herbs. Nothing more.

I probably should feel guilty for lying to him but I do not. He ate several croquettes and said they were delicious. I guess I’ll keep on lying about ingredients – hell, I might even turn it into an Olympic sport. :D

Carrot and apricot croquettes
slightly adapted from the always delicious and beautiful Australian Gourmet Traveller

650g carrots (about 5 medium), peeled and coarsely chopped
90g day-old white breadcrumbs
5 dried apricots, finely diced
2 spring onions, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons flaked almonds
1 garlic clove, crushed
½ cup packed flat-leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped
finely grated zest of 2 lemons
1 egg
salt and freshly ground black pepper
breadcrumbs, extra, for rolling the croquettes
2 tablespoons olive oil, for shallow-frying

Steam carrot in a steamer over a saucepan of boiling water until tender (20-25 minutes). Transfer to a bowl, mash to a smooth purée, add the breadcrumbs, apricots, spring onions, almonds, garlic, parsley, lemon zest, egg, season to taste and mix to form a soft dough, adding more breadcrumbs if dough is too sticky. Roll 1 ½ leveled tablespoons of mixture into cigar shapes then place on a tray lined with baking paper and refrigerate until firm (1-2 hours).
Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F. Heat olive oil in a deep-sided frying pan over medium-high heat. Roll the croquettes in the breadcrumbs, then cook them in the olive oil, in batches, until golden on the outside. Transfer to a baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes or until cooked through.
Serve immediately with lemon wedges.

Makes about 25

Coconut rice pudding with toasted almonds + "Super 8"

So my sister convinced me to go watch "Super 8" with her – you see, I belong to the Goonies generation, therefore I’m always suspicious towards movies with kids – I never expect much, because I know deep in my heart that nothing will beat my favorite. But I have to say that I was impressed with “Super 8”: I thought the movie was adorable, with very well directed scenes, and Elle Fanning is certainly one to be watched in the future.

What does “Super 8” have to do with this rice pudding? Well, actually, nothing. It’s just that my sister loved it as much as she loved the movie. And I did, too. :D

Coconut rice pudding with toasted almonds
slightly adapted from the always gorgeous Donna Hay Magazine

1/3 cup flaked almonds
1 cup (200g) Arborio rice
4 cups (960ml) coconut milk
1/3 cup (80ml) whole milk
½ cup + 1 tablespoon (112g) superfine sugar

Toast the almonds in a dry nonstick frying pan over medium heat until lightly golden and fragrant. Transfer to a plate and set aside to cool.
Make the rice pudding: combine the rice, coconut milk, milk and sugar in a medium saucepan and cook over high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil, reduce heat to low, cover and cook, stirring often, until rice is tender, 20 minutes.
Serve the pudding warm sprinkled with the almonds.

Serves 4