Cauliflower Soup Recipes Biography
source link :(google.com.pk)Ingredients
For the cauliflower soup
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
800g/1¾lb cauliflower florets, roughly chopped
1 litre/1¾ pints chicken or vegetable stock
150ml/5fl oz double cream
Preparation method
For the cauliflower soup, heat the oil in a deep, heavy-based pan over a medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and fry for 2-3 minutes, or until just softened.
Add the ground cumin and ground coriander and fry for a further 1-2 minutes, or until fragrant.
Add the chopped cauliflower and chicken stock. Bring the mixture to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 8-12 minutes, or until the cauliflower is tender. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.
Carefully pour the soup mixture into a food processor and blend to a purée (or alternatively, use a stick blender in the saucepan). Return the puréed soup mixture to the pan and add the cream. Season, to taste, with salt and freshly ground black pepper and warm through for 1-2 minutes.
Likewise that of broccoli, cauliflower head too is made up of tightly clustered florets that begin to form but halted at bud stage. This cool-season vegetable prefers fertile rich adequate moisture in the soil to flourish. Several cultivars exist other than common snow-white variety, including green, orange, purple, and romanesco heads.
Packed with rich nutrients, cauliflower or cabbage flower is one of the commonly used flower-vegetables. Its compact flower heads hold numerous health benefiting phtyo-nutrients such as vitamins, indole-3-carbinol, sulforaphane etc., that help prevent overweight, diabetes and offer protection from prostate, ovarian, and cervical cancers.
To keep its flower heads creamy white, they should be protected from sunlight, which, otherwise would turn them green due to photosynthesis. Farmers in the field, therefore, cover close-by leaves together over the heads when they reach about quarter of their destined size. Fully grown flower heads should be harvested at the right time in order to avoid them turning over-matured. Overmatured head loses compactness and its surface become grainy, discolored, and no longer has tenderness, and flavor.
Health benefits of Cauliflower
It is very low in calories. 100 g of the fresh cauliflower head provides only 26 calories. Nevertheless, it comprises of several health-benefiting antioxidants and vitamins in addition to be low in fat and zero cholesterol.
Its florets contain about 2 g of dietary fiber per 100 g; providing about 5% of recommended value.
Cauliflower contains several anti-cancer phyto-chemicals like sulforaphane and plant sterols such as indole-3-carbinol, which appears to function as an anti-estrogen agent. Together, these compounds have proven benefits against prostate, breast, cervical, colon, ovarian cancers by virtue of their cancer-cell growth inhibition, cytotoxic effects on cancer cells.
Furthermore, Di-indolyl-methane (DIM), a lipid soluble compound present abundantly in Brassica group of vegetables, including cauliflower, has found to be effective as immune modulator, anti-bacterial and anti-viral agent. This compound brings out these functions by virtue of its ability to synthesize and potentiate Interferon-Gamma receptors at the cellular level. DIM has currently been found application in the treatment of recurring respiratory papillomatosis caused by the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) and is in Phase III clinical trials for cervical dysplasia.
Cauliflowers
are available all around the year in
the markets; however, they are at their best during winter months. In
general, harvesting done when the head reaches the desired size but
before the florets begin to separate.
In the stores,
choose fresh heads featuring
snow/cream-white, compact, even heads that feel heavy in hand. Grainy
surface and separate heads indicate over maturity, while greenish
coloration may be due to over exposure to sunlight. Avoid heads with
bruised surface as they indicate poor handling of the flower and also
those
with dark color patches as they indicate mold disease known as "downy
mildew".
Once at home,
store inside the refrigerator set with higher relative humidity. They
stay
fresh for about a week if stored properly.
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