Seafood and Smoked Ham Soup en Croûte

Last month a friend of my mom faxed a recipe for her. She recommended my mom to try it. It was a cream soup recipe.  Hmm… sometimes my mom cooks cream soup for lunch so this recipe was not completely new to her. However, the different thing was that the recipe said the soup is eaten with puff pastry which is pasted above the soup. It is just like the one sold in Pizza Hut restaurant. Interested in the recipe, mom finally decided to try it one day. Of course, I did not forget to take some pictures of the results. They were as yummy as the one sold in cafes or restaurants!

Puffy Cream Soup ^^

Soup en Croute/Puffy cream soup

Serve it hot!

Later, I realized that there is a particular name for this kind of food. Look at the title and you know the name. Yup, it’s soup en croute. The term “en croute” is derived from French. The term refers to food that is wrapped or covered with pastry and then baked. The word "croute" itself means crust. It was so fascinating to hear the crisp sound of the puff pastry when I was breaking the crust, hoho…! Afterwards the mouth-watering smell of the soup rising from under the crust really whetted my appetite! That was an unforgettable delight, haha…

Are you curious about the recipe? Here I share it with you!

Ingredients:

30grs Onion – chopped

2 tablespoons Butter

50grs Shrimps

100grs Sweet corn kernels (canned corn is fine too)

250cc Cooking cream (ex.: Elle&Vire)

550cc water

2 pcs Bay leaves

2 pcs Smoked ham

Salt, pepper as desired

2-3 tablespoons multi-purpose flour (optional)

Puff pastry sheets – take out from the freezer and set aside to let it melt

Cooking Methods:

1. Clean the shrimps and remove the shells. Heat the pan, sauté the shrimps with onion and butter until half-done.
2. Chop the smoked ham. Pour the corn and smoked ham into the pan, stir well.
3.  Next, it’s time to add the cooking cream. While stirring the cream mixture, slowly pour in water.
4.  Add the bay leaves into the soup. If you think the cream soup is not thick enough, dissolve the flour with some water and pour it into the mixture, stir well.
5.  Season the mixture with salt and pepper. If you see boiling bubbles appear while stirring, it’s time to turn off the stove.
6. Remove the bay leaves from the soup. Pour it into bowls and let it chill.
7. After the puff pastry has turned supple and the soup has cooled down, cut the pastry a little bigger than the bowl. Stretch and tighten it to the surface of the bowl. Make sure not to touch the soup. 
8. Beat an egg and spread onto the puff pastry. Oven it until the color turned golden brown. 

HAPPY COOKING! ^o^/'

Carrot Cake

Hi!

It’s so exciting to post about cake again as I am a cake-lover, hahaha!

This time it is a little different. It is baked, not steamed one which I posted before. Thus, it has thicker aroma and flavor.  Moreover, it contains something healthy. What’s that? Shredded carrots! That’s it!

By adding some fine shredded carrots does not affect the tastiness of the cake but in contrast, it improves the nutrition level of the food! As a result, this cake is a healthy treat for the whole family especially for kids who do not like eating vegetables/ carrot. 

 

Carrot is a root vegetable that contains a lot of nutrients like Vitamin A, B1, B2, and C. It has high beta-carotene so it is good for our eyes. Carrot is useful for nourishing our body as well. If your child dislikes eating vegetable, then you need a creative and effective way to let him/her eat it. Simply cut the vegetable into small pieces and mix it with other ingredients or make it into soup, just don’t let your child know it.

Even though I am okay with carrot, it is always nice to explore different kind of carrot processing, haha… making it into a carrot cake is also a good idea! 

Breakfast with Cereal

Hello! 
I have a question. What do you usually have for breakfast? Is it a complete meal of rice and its side dish? Or toast with jam and peanut butter? 
Hmm...talking about breakfast, I feel uncomfortable with the fact that I often eat the first meal of the day in a hurry >_<'||
Indeed it is a bad habit. Eating must be done in a proper way. We have to focus on our food while eating since that will help our digestion. That's why we should not read or do something distracting while having meal.
However, commonly on Saturday or Sunday morning, I can enjoy my breakfast in a more relaxed manner. I always love having noodles, pancake, or porridge for breakfast on Saturday or Sunday. Since breakfast is the most important meal of the day, my mother - who always wakes up earlier than the others, likes to serve us a rich and nutritious breakfast. I am really grateful for that!
I remember a day when my friend and I were talking about foods, she laughed at me after knowing that I still loved cereals for breakfast. She said cereal was only for small kids! I frowned. She was wrong! Where did she get the notion from?
In fact, cereals also provide enough nutrition for adults and thus it is a good meal for the whole family. By the way, corn flakes is my favorite, haha...It always tastes great to be eaten with warm milk, yum!

Corn flakes with milk ^^

My Favorite Cereal