Happy Glow Juice

My very expensive, and jolly fancy juicer has been packed off to the supplier after the second one in 3 months failed. Which leaves me with my old faithful Kenwood - 20 years old and still managing to make great juice. It isn't as efficient, struggling along with a 250w motor as it is - but it has a new blade and if you don't mind the froth - job's a good 'un.

I made a great juice this afternoon - thought I'd share it. It's one of those - lob in what you've got in the fridgey cupboard and trust to the Juicy Gods that it will be drinkable.

Turns out - I'm good at this mixology game!

Sunshine Happy Juice

Yoo Hoo! I'm nearing the end of a Big Summer Juice Detox. 7 days of juice only deliciousness -and in this heat, turns out it's the perfect way to stay cool, hydrated and well fed. Hooray for Summer. Hooray for Juicey Highs and Hooray for Me!

There is a fully worked out plan that you can follow and if you are interested and fancy a go. I warmly recommend www.juicemaster.co.uk (there's an Australian site too). You don't have to buy the book, although if you are new to juicing then Slim4Life or the 7lbs in 7 Days books will set you up really well. Or you can simply follow along using the app or the wall chart - both are pretty cheap.

This is not the juice you are looking for**

You do need a juicer and a decent blender. Other than that - it's a trip to the fruit and veg shop & you're off! Expect headaches and some detox symptoms if you are a dedicated sugar and caffeine fiend - by day 3 or 4 you'll be over the worst and jumping about like a toddler!

Now then - I'm not as excited by the juices on the 7 Day Plan as I am a fan of Jason Vale's other juice plan recipes  so I have gone off piste with a few of my own - using the fruits and veggies that are good and cheap in my local grocery shops.

(I live on the longest street of independent shops in the UK - so I am a lucky duck. Throw a grape and you'll hit a grocery store. Then there are the deals on at the local supermarket and several local organic box suppliers not to mention the Sunday fruit and veg market! 

Yesterday on my way back from yoga, I scored a huge bag of nectarines and some baby gem lettuces for a song. I don't mind if the nectarines don't soften as they ripen - because I'm planning on slinging them in the juicer!)

To the recipe!

Easy Peasy Spring Soup

After whining about a truly horrid 'bought' Winter Veggie soup this week - my great pal Kim, who is an infinitely superior cook, suggested I get seasonal and Go Freezer! So here for you is Kim's answer to fast food. The simplest of pea soups - now then pay attention, because Kim doesn't do measuring, so we'll have to work this out together...

You will definitely need:

A bag of frozen peas - I opted for garden peas but you could use Petits Pois and mine weighed @1kg.
A lemon - preferably unwaxed.
White or brown onion and/or a couple of garlic cloves.
Stock if you like (Kim doesn't specify - I use a bit of unsalted bouillon powder).
Litre of boiling water (you may need more or less and this makes a lot of soup so make your adjustments).

This is what I did...

I peeled and finely chopped a small brown onion. I figured  a red one might muck up the colour of my beautiful pea green soup, but if red's all you got - don't sweat it - well do, but don't ... sigh. I Sauted my onion in a little butter and olive oil (just use oil if you prefer, and this would be a good time to sling in a clove or two of garlic).

I boiled the kettle, opened the peas and ratatatated them into my gert, big pot with the rind of the lemon, pouring about a litre of boiling water in after them and a teaspoon of powdered stock.

In the meantime I made cheat's melba toast.

Toast your bread. Take a jolly big, scary sharp, knife and carefully split the toast in half so you have one toasty side and one untoasty side. Keep your hand flat to the board. Now spread loads of butter on the untoasty side so that no-one notices... and Tadah!

Back to the peas pot plot

After about 5 - 6 mins on a gentle rolling boil. I added the juice of the lemon and whizzed the soup up with my trusty handheld whizzeratorer. Slung it in a bowl with loads of black pepper and some salt - dolloped a blob of creme frais on the top and some toasted pine nuts* and scoffed it warm. If you can wait that long this will be peatastically fresh and delish when served cold - but I'd already made my toast.

Post Prandial Observations:

Getting the liquid to peas ratio right is a matter of practice and taste I reckon - if it's a bit thick you can knock it back with some water - but I wouldn't want to do too much of that last minute for fear of diluting the lovely pea-ey flavour.

*I always have a bowl of toasted pine nuts on the side and a tub of creme frais in the fridge - together they can make any soup taste fancy, also brrrrilliant mixed into rice and cheese. Uhh uhh uhh! Try it first.

Oh no Emergency Soup Emergency!

Unlike her curvacious highness Lady N'gella I am often caught out by a badly timed Tesco delivery. Today found me heating up an emergency can of organic leak and potato soup. How desperate do you have to be to resort to tinned soup? Carrot free and two hours to delivery desperate, that's how much Nigella love - walk a week in my slippers lady.

Calamity! The soup started to make such a poppin' and a thwoppin' (it's a word!) noises in the microwave that I was forced to put on my specs and inspect the sell-by-date on the already recycled can. Oh NO! and Ahem. Dec 2008! Emergency. Soup Emergency...

By now I'm freezing, starving and going off my Larmin'* So here's what I did - those of an organic knit yer own knickers disposition look away now.

Rice and Cheese a la Louise.

• 1/2 packet of Tilda rice (I used the brown rice with corgette and red peppers, but you can use any and you can always, always make your own and add bits if you fancy it)
• smoked salmon bits (left over from indulgent breakfast plans that never quite came off this week)
• grated strong cheddar
• big blollop of fromage frais (you can use yogurt or creme freche too)

Rice and cheese and yogurt are wonderful together. So this lot all mixed up makes a delicious bowl of loveliness and if you've got some mange touts or beans or sugar snaps - you're really onto something... 

*derivation of this phrase in another post perhaps - particularly if the originatrix submits a tasty treat for us to try. She is the most bodacious of all cooks. Proper job too, not my nonsense madey up stuff.