Broccoli Soup with Burnt Garlic

Absolutely Helen Keller! And with that thought let me start my first post for this year. I herald it the way I comprehend it best and that is being in the midst of my family cooking and eating with them. The past year has been fruitful in many ways, there were highs and lows but am grateful that we didn't go through any major roller coaster rides!

I am also elated that I have maintained a few of the things that I had promised people. I love striking off things from my sacred "To Do List" Still miles to go before I sleep and a few more promises to keep...

While we are* still alive :Google Images

 I hope I will never experience that burnt out flame within...Yes age is catching up and the hormones are wreaking havoc internally from time to time but all is well! Talking about being burnt out gave me an idea of preparing a broccoli soup along with burnt garlic.

 I had this huge gorgeous head of a broccoli. Sliced it half and took the florets of a half and set aside.

In a huge saucepan, in a tbsp. of olive oil I threw in a few slices of garlic, a bay leaf, a few pepper corns, half a finely chopped onion and the stalk of the broccoli from where I pulled off the florets. Never chuck that off, it makes great add-ons in soups. The garlic was made to burn lightly as that was what I was looking for.

Add some vegetable stock or hot water into this along with those florets and a huge boiled potato that is diced finely and added to this mixture to give us that starchy thickness in our soup. As it cooks through add salt and pepper to your taste. We are not adding any other major spices in our soup so this salt and pepper alone along with the thickness of our potato gives us a tasty balance.

Some of my potatoes these days seem to resemble human figurines hence the clove eyes and the umbrella :)

There is video on my Instagram feed where one could hear the sizzle of the sliced garlic! Do give it a listen!!!

Some burnt garlic went into the sautéed mixture while a few were done to garnish the soup.

Extract the bay leaf before it goes into the processor.Allow the vegetable mixture to cool, add a cup of milk for extra creaminess to your soup. With the hand blender or soup blender pulse the vegetables in the pan. I pulsed it when it cooled in my juicer jar. I did not want to keep it smooth, I love the feel of those veggies in my mouth hence kept it slightly coarse. I did add a dash of chilly vinegar for an extra punch! Do taste and adjust seasoning accordingly!

Take it back to the pan and heat a bit more, switch off and serve hot with a garnish of burnt garlic and toasted bread or a few bread croutons sprinkled over the soup. You may also add a swirl of cream over the soup before serving!

The richness from the milk along with the goodness of the broccoli and the burnt garlic made a wonderful soup ideal for this wintery feel. Enjoy!