With the arrival of autumn and winter, the need to warm ourselves up, not only from the outside but also from within, increases. In this case, warm dishes made from seasonal ingredients have proven to be a natural and delicious way. Soups, pasta with tasty sauces, or creamy risottos are ideal, as they contain vitamins, proteins, minerals, and other beneficial substances that help strengthen our immunity during a period full of illnesses.
If your body thinks similarly and you've run out of your favorite recipes, let yourself be inspired by our selection, which includes Italian and Indian flavors, as well as a soup suitable for the youngest members of the family or a delicious bundt cake.
OUR TIP: If you are unsure which foods are in season, OZ Free Food can help. You can download a clear year-round fruit and vegetable calendar from their website and always have it on hand.
A soup that will definitely warm you up
Spices are a guarantee when preparing a dish that needs to warm the body. And where else to draw inspiration for spicy dishes than in Indian cuisine? The following red lentil soup recipe meets all the attributes of a great dish for cold days. Moreover, in this case, the sight of the sympathetic chef will also warm you up.
For 4 – 6 servings, we need:
2 carrots
2 onions
1 red/orange bell pepper
4 cloves of garlic
1 thumb-sized piece of ginger
1 red chili pepper (optional)
1 tbsp curry
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tbsp tomato paste
100g red lentils
400ml coconut milk
750ml vegetable broth
a handful of fresh coriander
100g yogurt
salt
pepper
olive oil
Method:
- Dice the carrots and onions. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a pot over medium-high heat. Add the vegetables with a pinch of salt and sauté for 5-10 minutes until softened.
- Finely chop the garlic and add it to the pan along with the ginger and chili. Sauté for about 1 minute until fragrant.
- Add the dried spices, mix well, and simmer for 1 minute. Then add the tomato paste and cook for another minute.
- Pour in the coconut milk, add the lentils and vegetable broth. Mix everything well, bring to a boil, and cook covered for 20-30 minutes. Stir regularly to prevent burning.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste. To adjust the consistency, blend half of the soup until smooth and pour it back into the rest. If necessary, add a little more boiled water.
- Ideally, serve the soup in bowls. Top with dollops of yogurt, fresh coriander, chili, if desired, a drizzle of chili oil, and a pinch of black pepper. Naan is ideal with the soup, but toast also works well.
Soup for lovers of Italian cuisine
Italians simply know how to cook. But this time, why not swap classics like pizza or pasta for a creamy soup with gnocchi?
We need:
280 – 400g mild or spicy Italian sausage
1 leek (white and light green parts only)
1 chopped shallot
3 minced garlic cloves
3 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper
1 cup dry white wine
approx. 800ml crushed tomatoes
approx. 4 cups broth
approx. 450g gnocchi
1 cup heavy cream
2 handfuls spinach
Parmesan cheese
Optional: red pepper flakes
Method:
- In a large pot, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and brown the Italian sausage over medium heat. Remove and set aside.
- Add another 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the same pot and sauté the chopped leek, shallot, and garlic. Season with salt and pepper and stir for another 4-5 minutes until slightly softened.
- Pour in the white wine and stir for another few minutes. Add the crushed tomatoes and broth, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer partially covered for 20-30 minutes.
- Add the gnocchi and continue cooking until tender. Add the cup of cream, stir, return the Italian sausage, and add several handfuls (or to taste) of spinach. It wilts quite quickly, so it's best to serve the soup immediately.
- Pour into a bowl and garnish with plenty of grated Parmesan, a little red pepper, and a pinch of ground black pepper.
Pumpkin risotto to soothe the stomach and soul
Omitting Hokkaido pumpkin from your autumn or winter menu would be a sin. From the many recipes where Hokkaido takes center stage, we decided to choose the one for risotto by the master of his craft, Martin Pyco Rausch.
We need:
small Hokkaido pumpkin – 1100g (800g after cleaning)
250g Arborio rice
1 shallot
100ml white wine
4 tbsp olive oil
40g Parmesan cheese
20g butter
salt
ground black pepper
½ nutmeg
2 tbsp fresh parsley
Method:
- Wash the pumpkin, remove the seeds, and cut it into small cubes. Mix with olive oil (2 tbsp), grated nutmeg, a pinch of black pepper, and a teaspoon of salt. Spread on a baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes in an oven preheated to 180°C with hot air.
- After baking, take a quarter of the roasted pumpkin, pour boiling water (500ml) over it in a pot, blend it until smooth, and keep it warm over very low heat. Set aside the remaining pumpkin.
- In a pan or pot, sauté the finely chopped shallots in the remaining olive oil (2 tbsp). After 5 minutes, add the rice and stir for 2 minutes to warm it thoroughly. Deglaze with wine (100 ml) and stir until the rice has absorbed all the liquid.
- Gradually add the hot pumpkin cream and continue stirring for another 16 – 20 minutes. Add the liquid ladle by ladle, only after the rice has absorbed the previous portion. Before the last ladle, add the roasted pumpkin pieces (set aside a few pieces for decoration) and a handful of parsley to the pot. If necessary, you can add another ladle of boiling water.
- Remove from heat, add butter (20 g) and half of the grated Parmesan (20 g). Season with salt to taste. Stir and let it rest for a while.
- Garnish individual portions with the remaining grated Parmesan and roasted pumpkin pieces.
Pyco's TIP: Pumpkin risotto immediately captivates with its vibrant color and delicate, sweeter flavor. Chili or other spicier ingredients can be added to the base. If necessary, the pumpkin cream can be diluted with hot water towards the end of adding it.
Northern inspiration, suitable even for the youngest
Lohikeitto, or Finnish salmon soup, is nutritionally balanced and satisfying. It boasts a unique flavor, colorful appearance, and its great advantage is that it contains ingredients suitable for small children. If you want to refresh your family's menu, we recommend this version from oliviintanierik.
For 2 adult and 1 child portions, you will need:
250 g salmon
200 g potatoes
1/2 leek
2 large carrots
Avocado oil (or olive oil or other)
180 ml whipping cream
500 ml vegetable or fish broth (or water)
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Fresh dill to taste
Salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions:
- Sauté the leek and carrots, cut into larger pieces, in oil.
- Pour in the broth/water and cook for 15 minutes.
- Then add the diced potatoes. (The carrots have a head start to soften.)
- Add black pepper, and salt if needed, and cook until the vegetables are tender.
- When the vegetables are soft, pour in the cream, add the salmon cut into larger pieces, and dill. Do not
let it boil, but gently heat for 10 minutes until the salmon is cooked.
- After removing from heat, season with lemon juice. Add more salt after reserving the child's portion.
- Serve with fresh dill.
Improved Bundt cake – apple and quark
A sweet treat must not be missing at the end. And what could be better for this weather than a cup of warm drink and a Bundt cake, full of apples and quark? We were tempted by the recipe from stvoryzkuchyne. Will you take a bite too?
You will need:
3 eggs
200 g sugar
150 ml Acidko (plain or vanilla)
70 ml oil
100 ml milk
1 sachet baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
280 g all-purpose flour
110 g apples
250 g smooth quark
1 egg
4 tbsp caramel Salko
2 tbsp cornstarch
1 vanilla sugar
Butter
Cinnamon sugar
Instructions:
- Whisk the eggs simply with sugar. Add oil, Acidko, milk and stir.
- Peel the apples, grate them coarsely, squeeze out the juice, and mix them into the mixture.
- In another bowl, mix cinnamon, flour, and baking powder, then fold into the batter.
- In another bowl, manually mix the quark, Salko, starch, egg, and sugar.
- Then pour half of the batter into a buttered and floured bundt pan, dollop two-thirds of the quark mixture on top, add the second half of the batter, and finally the rest of the quark mixture.
- Gently swirl the batter with a skewer.
- Bake in an oven preheated to 170 degrees Celsius for approximately 70 minutes.
- Brush the bundt cake with melted butter and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.
OUR TIP: Every good meal calls for a tasty drink. And if it's also packed with vitamins and minerals, you've hit the jackpot. Ideal for cold and gloomy days is also Care Water DEFENSE, which, thanks to its content, boosts immunity and supports overall health.
We hope we've inspired you with our selection of recipes and that you'll try some of them before the Christmas season, full of treats. If so, we'd love to hear your impressions or see photos of your culinary endeavors. Bon appétit!
