FISH SOUP WITH RICE

We will cook soup today. Something rewarding and delicious. I remember the fish soup my mom used to make. I loved that soup. I will make it today. A good Fish Soup with Rice.

Ingredients:

Some fish bones
Some little pieces of fish
½ onion
1 bay leaf
3 tablespoons rice
Some drops of Tabasco sauce
Some saffron
½ teaspoon turmeric
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
½ teaspoon dill herb
Some freshly ground pepper to taste
Salt to taste

First we will have to make the fish broth. To do that, we will put some water in a pan and we will add the fish bones, the pieces of fish, the onion and the bay leaf. If we want, we can also add some carrots, celery or leek. We will cook for about half an hour in a low heat. When the broth is ready, we will strain the broth through a colander to get rid of the fish bones. We can add the pieces of fish too to the broth. Once we have our broth in the pan again, we will add the rice to the pan. Then we will add the Tabasco sauce, the saffron, the turmeric, the garlic, the dill herb and the ground pepper. We will salt to taste too. It is not a bad idea to add some onion and celery very finely chopped. We will let our soup cook till the rice is ready. Then we will have a delicious soup: fish and rice. Enjoy!

**more pics**

BROCCOLI CASSEROLE

A delicious surprise for me. This is one of my favourite American recipes. I have to admit that I was not a broccoli lover. But now, I find it good. This recipe is wonderful. I discovered it as a side in a Southern restaurant and then, of course, I had to try to make it. And it is good, and not very difficult indeed. It is delicious. I love these American casseroles.

Ingredients:

1 cup rice
2 cups broccoli
1 cup celery
1 10.5 oz can cream of mushroom soup
1 10.5 oz can cream of celery soup
1 tablespoon butter
1 green onion
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Some salt to taste
Some Cheddar cheese

As we are using broccoli, the procedure will be different depending on if you use fresh or frozen broccoli. If you use it fresh, you will have to cook it longer. I normally use frozen broccoli, it is really good. But of course, you can have it fresh.
First I boil the broccoli, cut in little pieces. I also boil the celery, cut in little pieces as well, as I use it frozen too. Once this is ready I remove the water and reserve.
You will also have to prepare the rice. You can prepare it the way you normally use. Once this is done, reserve.
And now we will take a big pan and heat the butter. We will cook the green onion cut in little pieces. We will add the garlic later. If you use fresh celery, you should fry it now along with the green onion and the garlic.
Now we will add the contents of the two cans to the pan, the cream of mushroom soup and the cream of celery soup. We will let it cook for a while and then we will add the Cheddar cheese. We will stir continuously and when the cheese is melted, we can add the rice and the broccoli, and the celery in case you have boiled it with the broccoli. Mix well. We can taste it and add some pepper and salt to taste.
You can serve it like this but you can also put the contents in another container suitable for the oven. If you do this, after having moved the Broccoli Casserole to this new container, spread some more cheese over it and bring it to a preheated oven to 350ºF until the cheese melts. And enjoy. It is a delicious side but you can also eat it as your main course.

**more pics**

JAMBALAYA

I love New Orleans. This city is a melting pot. And melting pots produce wonderful food. New Orleans has the influence of France, Spain, Italy… All those influences combined make all those delicious dishes: Gumbo, Muffaletta, Beignets, Po’ Boys… and, of course, Jambalaya. Today we will cook Jambalaya, New Orleans Paella. I call it like this because, although the way Jambalaya is cooked is different from the way paella is prepared, it has many similarities to the Spanish dish. Of course there are as many jambalayas as paellas, but in essence, both are rice dishes with meat and seafood. I will cook a typical Jambalaya with prawns and chicken.

Ingredients:

Some vegetable oil
1 cup chopped onion
½ cup chopped celery
½ cup chopped green pepper
½ cup sliced okra
1 chicken breast
1 Andouille Sausage, cut in half slices
1 bay leaf
½ teaspoon thyme
½ teaspoon oregano
¼ teaspoon sweet paprika
¼ teaspoon hot paprika
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
½ cup crushed tomato
2 cups seafood and/or chicken stock
2 peeled and chopped tomatoes
Some salt
1 green onion (only the green stalks)
1 cup rice
10 prawns

The first thing we will do is to put some oil in a pan. I like using a big pan. It is important that the heat is well distributed. We will sauté the celery, the onion and the green pepper. I like okra in my Jambalaya so I will add it now too. Five minutes later we will add the chicken cut in little pieces and the Andouille sausage. Let it cook for a couple of minutes, stirring, and then add the bay leaf, the thyme, the oregano, the paprika and the black pepper. Stir well and then add the garlic and the crushed tomato. Let it cook for a while and when the tomato is reduced a bit, add the chopped tomato and the stock. Add some salt if needed and bring it to a boil, but the heat must be low.
Let’s say something about the stock. You can use either seafood or chicken stock. You can use both too. If you want, make your own stock using some chicken bones and the shell of the prawns, along with some vegetables.
Coming back to our recipe, we have to add the rice and the green onion stalks after 10-15 minutes of low heat. As for the rice, you can use regular long rice or parboiled rice. I prefer the regular one but if you use it, you take the risk of getting a sticky jambalaya. Parboiled rice is safer. When you add the rice, increase the heat and stir the bottom of the pan. We do this because we do not want the rice to stick on the pan. When you see that the rice starts absorbing the liquid, turn the heat off, cover the pan and let it sit there for 20-25 minutes. You can add the prawns now too if they are uncooked, but if they are cooked, you should add them at the last moment.

And then you will have your Jambalaya. You can serve it alone or as an accompaniment to other dishes. Really good.

**more pics**