Curry-flower Soup

This is the flower from the Murraya koenigii or Curry Tree.

It’s not actually in my soup at all.
But I made a curry cauliflower soup which came out pretty well (Martin helped – mostly he showed me what to do with the leeks. Thanks Martin).

In keeping with the money theme, I added up the cost of the ingredients that I had to buy (most of them except garlic and curry paste). It cost about $25, but I still have rice, a leek, a bit of cauliflower and some other ingredients to make more food. It’s not profitable, but it’s pretty affordable. (Note to self: find a way to make people pay to eat my food)

I made this recipe myself, but it was inspired by Melancauli Baby from Eat, Shrink & Be Merry (I love all their stuff).

Curry-flower soup
1/2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tbsp butter
about 2 leeks, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic
about 3/4 of a cauliflower (small florets)
1 white potato, chopped
1 tsp curry paste (or powder)
3 cups chicken broth
salt & pepper
1/2 tsp cumin
1 cup brown & wild rice
1 cup coconut milk
1/3 cup grated 2 yr cheddar cheese
1/4 cup swiss cheese

(Cook rice while making the rest of the soup) Heat oil & butter, cook leeks with curry until soft (3 minutes). Add cauliflower and potato, cook for another minute. Add broth, cumin, salt and pepper, bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover & simmer for 12-15 minutes (vegetables should be tender) Add cooked rice, milk, and cheese. Heat again, serve.

*not shown: tasty country bread broiled with cheddar cheese on top

Martin was a bit flabbergasted at my use of rice in a soup. I was defending the rice by saying, “it’s just a starch! Like potato soup”…then I realized I was putting potato in too. So this is the starchiest soup in the world – even without the bread I served it with. The good thing about it is that it is filling. I’m still feeling very nicely full from a few hours ago. Martin and I called over some friends and we ate soup and talked about finite universes…and Dune. I made way too much soup but most of it was still eaten, with about 2 servings left for me to eat later.

So, the soup. It was interesting… Next time I make it I will change a few things though. Like use more curry than I did, add hot sauce, use regular milk instead of coconut milk (or only a little coconut milk), ditch the potatoes, and forget the swiss cheese and go for the cheddar.
Side note – the 2 year old cheddar I bought was award winning cheese (Canadian Reserve – evidently the world’s best aged cheddar)! It was really nice and sharp without being too sour tasting.
Anyway – even the way it was the soup was very very good. I liked the leek flavour even though it seemed it would be overpowering at first, it wasn’t.
All in all, a fine soup and I’m actually going to bed on a full stomach. =)