Curried Pumpkin Soup With Bacon

Curried Pumpkin Soup With Bacon
This delicious soup will warm you up on a cold winter's night. The aroma of the curry cooking will tempt you and you'll get a nice after glow of flavour and heat afterwards. For a vegetarian version, hold the bacon.
Author:
Cuisine: Cape Malay Curry
Recipe type: Lunch, Dinner
Serves: 2
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Ingredients
  • ¼ pumpkin peeled & roughly diced
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 1 red onion peeled & sliced
  • 300g bacon rashers roughly sliced
  • 2 cloves garlic crushed
  • 1 tbsp chicken stock powder
  • ½ tbsp Afrikoz Spices SOUTH blend
  • ½ tbsp fresh rosemary chopped
  • Salt & pepper
  • 2 fresh rosemary sprigs
  • Sour cream
Instructions
  1. Cook the pumpkin in a pot of boiling water until tender (about 10-15 minutes).
  2. When cooked, drain the pumpkin reserving the hot liquid.
  3. Mash the pumpkin roughly in the pot.
  4. Add the chicken stock powder to the reserved liquid & stir.
  5. Add the butter to a hot fry pan and throw in the onions & garlic. (You can do this towards the end of the pumpkin cooking time).
  6. Toss for a few minutes then add the bacon & Afrikoz Spices SOUTH blend.
  7. Toss until caramelised & cooked through. (If it doesn't have a yellow look about it, feel free to 'sprinkle' a little more Afrikoz Spices SOUTH blend on. But don't go overboard unless you want a fiery hot soup!)
  8. Add to the pot of pumpkin & stir.
  9. Taste & grind salt & pepper into the soup to your liking.
  10. Add enough chicken stock liquid to the pot to be able to get a medium consistency.
  11. Using a hand stick blender, whizz the soup mixture until it's fairly smooth. (I like it to have a bit of texture, so I don't make it reaaalllly smooth.)
  12. Add the chopped rosemary to the soup.
  13. Keep adding more chicken stock & stir until you get the desired consistency that you like.
  14. Once it's hot, remove from the heat & serve in bowls.
  15. Top with a generous dollop of sour cream & garnish with a rosemary sprig.
  16. Serve with a toasted roll slathered in butter!
Notes
My husband kept saying "Yum" after every other mouthful, so that's always a good recommendation! 😉 This recipe made enough for 2 people with 1 bowl left over for lunch the next day.

 

Sweet & Spicy Mango Chicken

Sweet & Spicy Mango Chicken
A quick and easy meal to throw together. The addition of Afrikoz Spices NORTH blend adds dimension to the flavour of this dish.
Author:
Cuisine: African
Recipe type: Dinner
Serves: 4
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Ingredients
  • 4 chicken breasts
  • 1 teaspoon Afrikoz Spices NORTH blend
  • 4 slices prosciutto
  • 2 mangoes, peeled and sliced into thick slices
  • Olive oil
  • Vegies for steaming like broccoli florets & sliced capsicum
  • 1 small tin of bean sprouts or a handful of fresh sprouts
  • 1 Kiwifruit
  • Mango Sauce:
  • 1 mango, peeled and chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • ½ tsp Afrikoz Spices NORTH blend
  • 80 ml honey
Instructions
  1. Place chicken between sheets of greaseproof paper and pound lightly with a meat mallet to flatten until close to equal thickness.
  2. Sprinkle Afrikoz Spices NORTH blend over chicken.
  3. Layer prosciutto and mango slices on chicken and roll up, secure with toothpicks. (Leave a few smaller slices for garnishing).
  4. Heat a little olive oil in a pan brown chicken on both sides.
  5. Place breasts in an oven proof dish and finish in a 180 degree C oven for about 25 mins or until chicken is cooked through.
  6. Steam the vegies to serve with the chicken.
  7. Mango Sauce:
  8. Place all the sauce ingredients into a small saucepan and cook, stirring, 4-5 mins or until sauce has thickened slightly.
  9. Remove and blend or process sauce to make a smooth puree like mixture.
  10. Serve chicken breasts over the bean sprouts drizzled with sauce.
  11. Garnish with a small slices of mango & kiwifruit.
  12. Arrange steamed vegies around the chicken to finish off this colourful, tasty dish!
Notes
Adapted from a recipe by The Flying Chef.

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