Thursday 10 February 2011

Soup made with garlic and love... and pumpkin scones too...

"This kind of unflashy peasant soup does - there are no two ways about it - rather resemble dishwater, but it is delicious dishwater. Besides, it's exactly this sort of home food, the food that belongs in the kitchen, that I love and need" Nigella Lawson in Kitchen, recipes from the heart of the home.

Don't you just love the title of this recipe? I do.
It's amazing what you can create with so little ingredients and delicious too. I mean this soup is just chicken stock with a healthy amount of garlic (1 bulb), a tablespoon of thyme, one leek, a couple of potatoes, a whole lotta love and some chopped parsley to serve. That's it.

As mentioned above, this is not the prettiest soup, but it doesn't matter because its taste blinds you, just like love. 


These savoury pumpkin scones are great accompaniment for the soup; and they're so easy to make. The pumpkin is from a tin and no kneading. The sweetness of the pumpkin is well balanced by the saltiness of the Parmesan and Worcestershire sauce, and also a little heat from the chilli oil. Like all scones, I prefer them when they're warm and served with generous smearing of soft butter. Nigella suggests cream cheese for these ones.


Pumpkin Scones
Recipe by Nigella Lawson
Makes 12

175 g canned pumpkin purée
50 g grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon sea salt flakes or 1/2 teaspoon pouring salt
good grinding white pepper
2 teaspoon chilli oil
250 g plain flour, plus more for dusting work surface
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
a little milk to glaze

1 x baking sheet
1 x 5 cm scone/cookie cutter

Preheat the oven to 200 C. Put the pumpkin purée, Parmesan, egg, Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper and chilli oil in a bowl. Beat well to mix.

In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder and bicarb. Fold this into the pumpkin mixture and work it to form a dough.

Flour your work surface, then tip the dough out of the bowl and pat down with your hands to make a slab about 5 cm thick. There's no need to roll it.

Cut the dough into scones using a round 5 cm cutter that you have first dipped in flour. Place the scones on a baking sheet, about 3 cm apart. Re-form the dough so that you can keep cutting out rounds.

Brush the top with a little milk and then bake for 15 minutes. Once out of the oven, let cool a little and they're best when still warm.

17 comments:

  1. oh those scones look amazing!... I love messing around with scone recipes but have never served them with soup... which is so daft really because I can totally see how they would work... fabulous, thank you x

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  2. Garlic and love are two of my favourite ingredients! But, canned pumpkin in the scones? Shame on you, Nigella! (Perhaps I am only saying that because we can't get it here. Is it ok? Really?

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  3. Michael, your description of this soup is really beautiful. It makes me want some right now! And those pumpkin scones...wonderful.

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  4. Pumpkin scones with worcestershire? Must try.

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  5. Michael-I sure would love to have a nice bowl of your delicious garlic soup, and a couple of those yummy scones...very nice pairing!
    Have a wonderful weekend!

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  6. Simple sometimes is best, especially when it comes to this soup and pumpkin scones (oh how wonderful they look!). With your love for anything Nigella, you should head over to Maison Cupcake blog for that Forever Nigella contest she's running! You'd certainly qualify.

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  7. I love that Nigella can make dishwater sound so appetizing!! :) I have just recently tried my own hand at a garlic soup... and I'm a huge fan! Will definitely be trying this one too!

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  8. Thank you everyone for the lovely comments.

    Lucy: Well, canned pumpkin isn't a native ingredient in Britain as well. I found it in the American section at the supermarket. :)

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  9. Michael, even if your soup is not the most photogenic thing you'll ever make, it sounds perfectly delicious (though *I* would cut back a bit on the garlic!).

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  10. This soup proves once again that simple is best. Awesome soup. The pumpkin scones...They rock. I could eat this type of biscuit anytime or anyday.

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  11. I love the name of the soup and I have had my eye on those pumpkin scones ever since I saw Nigella make them on her show. I definitely need to give them a go. You are so good about making all her interesting recipe, Michael. Kudos to you.

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  12. Sometimes the best tasting food doesn't look that way! The soup sound like something I would love and the pumpkin scones look delicious!

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  13. I am saving the pumpkin scones recipe to try! Love their earthy rustic look. I would love them with some roasted mushroom soup though. :-))

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  14. Soups are so difficult to photograph, Michael. You've done a good job making it look tempting. But reading the recipe itself is what does it for me.
    And this soup sounds excellent. I love the idea of the savory scones. Interesting to have Parmesan with pumpkin...and a little heat from the chili oil.

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  15. Michael, those pumpkin scones sound amazing!! And soup doesn't always have to be pretty as long as its delicious! I'm sure Nigella wouldn't let us down!
    Cheers
    Dennis

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  16. You had me at garlic! Then you threw in some love and pumpkin and I am all yours!

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  17. Love all the garlic in this soup, a really lovely recipe...but oh my on these scones, yes butter please :

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