Beetroot and Carrot Soup with Coconut Cream

Lovely, light but filling beetroot and carrot soup beautifully done by mum. :) Beetroots are very healthy with a lot of vitamins and their leafy greens are the most nutritious. Apart from being healthy, they are very tasty and together with carrots make a perfect marriage since the carrots give a nice sweetness. Carrots also have a lot of carotene which is also a very nutritious component. It has a velvety taste from the beets which I really like and very is very substantial as some may think that cream soups are not enough or not too filling. Also added is coconut cream which makes it very smooth and creamy.

Beetroot and Carrot Soup with Coconut Cream
Ingredients

• 4 beetroots
• 2 carrots
• 5 garlic cloves
• 1 onion
• 1 tbs coconut oil
• 165ml coconut milk
• 4 cups water or more
• 1/2 cup parsley

Cooking Directions

1. -Fry onion and garlic in a large pan.
2. -Add the diced beetroots and carrots to the frying in coconut oil.
3. -Add water to fill the whole pan and season before getting to a boil.
4. -As it boils, leave to simmer until the beets and carrots are very tender to cream up with a hand mixer and when this is done, add the coconut cream.
5. -Serve with a bit of chopped parsley and a little cream on top.

Original Recipe by our fellow sister Meredith Gresham.

Basic Tomato Pasta Sauce

The way I love cooking my basic pasta sauce is very simple but some ingredients make all the difference. First of all I like the tomatoes to be fresh not canned, which canned is a quicker alternative, but there is nothing better the fresh stuff. I also like to add two ingredients which I think make a lovely sauce and changes the palate, smoked paprika and chilli flakes. I like the smokiness of the paprika and it also gives a more intense red colour apart from the tomato paste, and the chilli flakes gives it that kick. 

Ingredients (serves about 3 - 4):

5 - 6 fresh tomatoes 

5 - 6 cloves garlic 

Grapeseed oil

1 and a half teaspoon smoked paprika

A pinch of chilli flakes 

1 tablespoon tomato paste

Salt (optional for any dietary restrictions)

1 tablespoon sugar (for the acidity)

A little water 

Cornflour (as a binder if the sauce would still be liquidy)

Maltese Gbejna or Parmesan cheese to decorate 

Parsley to decorate 

Method:

Blend tomatoes into a food processor. Chop garlic and fry into a pan in the grapes oil along with the chilli flakes and and half a half a teaspoon smoked paprika. Once the garlic have had a golden colour, add the tomatoes puree a little water of the puree is very dense, the rest of the paprika, the sugar, salt and tomato paste. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and leave to simmer for around 15 mins. Once it has been cooking, add the cornflour to give the sauce that velvety texture if it has a liquid consistency. Cook your favourite pasta and decorate with a few slices of Maltese Gbejna (Maltese goats cheese or parmesan cheese) and parsley. Enjoy!