Sweet potato & butternut squash soup with lemon & garlic toast

Tasty winter soup, Good Food style...

500g sweet potatoes, peeled and diced, 1 butternut squash, peeled, deseeded and diced, 1 tbsp clear honey, 1 tbsp olive oil, plus a drizzle, 2 onions, roughly chopped, 3 garlic cloves, crushed, 1 l vegetable or chicken stock, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp grated nutmeg, 100 ml double cream
For the toast: 1 tbsp olive oil, 3 garlic cloves, crushed, 100g butter, at room temperature, zest from 1 lemon, 2 tbsp snipped chives, 1 tbsp chopped thyme, 2 ciabatta loaves, cut into slices

Heat oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Put the sweet potato and butternut squash on a baking tray and add the honey and a drizzle of olive oil. Roast for 40-45 mins until soft and starting to caramelise at the edges, stirring occasionally.
Meanwhile, fry the onions in 1 tbsp olive oil until soft, then add the garlic, chicken stock, cinnamon and nutmeg. Bring to the boil, and simmer for 5 mins.
Remove the sweet potatoes and butternut squash from the oven and add to the pan with the stock. Blend everything until smooth using a stick blender. Stir in most of the cream and bring back to a gentle simmer, and season with salt and pepper to taste.
To make the lemon & garlic toasts, gently warm the olive oil and garlic in a pan over a low heat for a few mins; the garlic should be softened but not browned. Remove from the heat and mix in the butter and lemon zest until smooth. Leave to cool, then stir in the chives and thyme.
Toast the ciabatta slices, and top each with a spoonful of garlic butter. Serve with the soup, drizzled with the remaining cream, and some black pepper.

Kürbis-Kartoffel-Suppe mit Mandelpesto

I had half a pumpkin in the freezer for a long time so I decided to make a soup. I discovered this recipe on Lecker.de and I really liked it. Here it is:

500 g Hokkaido pumpkin, 300g floury potatoes, 1 onion, 5 tbsp sunflower oil, 2 tbsp curry, 1/4 l apple juice, 1 tbsp vegetable stock, 80 g almonds, 1 bunch of parsley, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, salt, pepper, 80 g crème fraîche

Cut the pumpkin into quarters, remove seeds and chop coarsely. Peel the potatoes and cut them into small pieces. Peel and chop the onion. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large saucepan. Sauté the onions in it, add the curry powder. Add the pumpkin and the potatoes. Pour over them the apple juice and 3/4 liters of water. Stir in the broth. Bring to a boil, cover and cook for about 30 minutes.For the pesto toast fry the almonds in a dry frying pan, remove and let cool. Wash the parsley and chop finely, chop also the almonds. Mix with parsley, lemon juice and 4 tablespoons oil. Season with salt and pepper.Puree the soup with a hand blender. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with sour cream and pesto.

Food Bloggers Conference

Yupiii, I just received my invitation for the Winter Edition of Food Bloggers Conference...
Let the interesting times begin :D

Sir David Attenborough narrates Adele's Hello

Chicken-Liver Crostini

I just came back from Florence, where I ate a lot of delicious things, among them, chicken liver crostini... so the first thing I cooked when I came home was.... Chicken Liver Crostini ;)

Found this quick recipe on foodandwine.com, it's quite easy to make and soo delicious. 

You can eat it hot or cold.

1 pound chicken livers, 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, 1 white onion, finely chopped, 2 sage sprigs, 1 rosemary sprig, 1 anchovy fillet, minced, 1 tablespoon drained capers, salt and freshly ground pepper, 1/4 cup cognac, 1 large baguette, thinly sliced 

Trim the chicken livers of any sinews and veins and set them on paper towels to dry for about 20 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350°. In a large skillet, melt the butter in 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Add the chopped onion, sage and rosemary and cook over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the minced anchovy and capers and cook over low heat until the onion is lightly browned, about 8 minutes longer. Scrape the mixture into a medium bowl.
Add the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil to the skillet. Season the chicken livers with salt and pepper, add them to the skillet and cook over high heat until browned, about 2 minutes. Flip and cook the chicken livers for 1 minute longer. Stir in the onion mixture. Add the cognac and carefully ignite it with a long match. Cook the livers until the flames subside.
Discard the herb sprigs and scrape the contents of the skillet into a food processor; let cool slightly. Pulse until chunky, then season with salt and pepper.
Place the baguette slices on a large baking sheet and toast them for about 15 minutes, until they are golden and crisp. Spread the baguette toasts with the chicken liver and serve.