Soup for Fall !!

Easy to prepare and delicious to taste, tomato soup is a preferred choice for all taste buds. Trust me; a bowl of soup can be your best friend this season.

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With the onset of cold weather, my heart (and tummy) is craving for something warm and soothing. I cannot think of a more perfect meal than a comforting, big bowl of hot soup. Soup is the best thing! They make the perfect meal for the cool days of fall. Soup warms the body and the spirit.

This cream of tomato soup is a rich, smooth, creamy, mildly seasoned soup. It is a thick soup of vine-ripened tomatoes and generous dose of cream. A smooth blend of cream combined with tomatoes, vegetable stock, herbs and finely chopped onion create a creamy tomato soup. This simple classic is warm, soothing and luscious!

A soup can be a great addition to the fall and winter dining table. Easy to prepare and delicious to taste, tomato soup is a preferred choice for all taste buds. Trust me; a bowl of soup can be your best friend this season!

This recipe makes approximately 4 servings. You can tweak the quantities of the ingredients as per your taste.

Diced Tomato	- 2 cups
Onions	- 1 chopped
Cream	- 2 cups
Vegetable broth	- 2 cups
Butter	- 6 tbsp
Flour	- 4tbsps
Parsley	- 3 sprigs
Bay leaf	- 1 leaf
Garlic	- 4 cloves minced
Pepper	- to taste
Salt	- to taste

Melt butter in a pot. Add garlic, onions and sauté till translucent.Add flour and stir for few minutes.

Add the diced tomatoes, vegetable stock, bay leaf, parsley and cook on medium heat for about 30 minutes.

You can use any flavorful culinary herb of your choice instead of parsley. And as a substitute to vegetable broth, you can use chicken broth to give extra flavor

Remove from heat and cool. Discard the parsley, bay leaf from the soup and purée the soup in a blender.

Pour the purée into the pot and place it back on heat. Add cream and cook until the soup thickens.

Sprinkle some parsley and freshly cracked pepper, and serve with French Baguette.

Bubbles Pudding !!!

Bubbles Pudding is sweet milk based dessert with a creamy texture and flavor. A quick, healthy, and easy dessert. A dessert that tastes both familiar and exotic.

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Summer has passed, the days are becoming shorter, nights are getting colder, and leaves are changing color. Fall is here! Bubbles pudding is one of the best desserts during the transition from one season to another. Serve warm in fall and winter, serve chill in spring and summer, either way it tastes scrumptious.

Bubbles Pudding is sweet milk based dessert with a creamy texture and flavor. It uses tapioca pearls also known as Sabudana or Sago pearls combined with the milk to makes a luscious dessert. The tiny bubbles of the tapioca pearls give the pudding a unique texture, like tiny bubbles surrounded by a creamy sauce. This pudding requires a little attentiveness and careful stirring. Otherwise, it is a quick, healthy, and easy dessert. A dessert that tastes both familiar and exotic.

This is one of my favorite desserts growing up; I called it ‘Bubbles Pudding’! My mom would make it specially for me. Something about it makes me feel comforted, the chewiness of the bubbles and the creaminess of the pudding. The cardamom and vanilla flavor of the pudding makes me long for it.

This recipe makes approximately 3 to 4 servings. You can always modify the quantity of the ingredients according to your taste.

Tapioca Pearls	- 1 cup
Milk/Cream	- 2-3cups
Sugar	- 8 tbsps
Cardamom Powder	- 1 tsp
Vanilla essence	- 1 tsp
Pistachios	- for garnish
Raisins	- for garnish

Heat 3-4 cups water in a heavy bottomed vessel and add tapioca pearls.

Cook the tapioca pearls until slightly soft and transparent. You do not want to cook it completely.

Remove from heat, drain and rinse with cold water to remove the excess starch. Then, place it back on heat.

Tapioca pearls get starchy as it cooks. I prefer cooking it in water because I can drain and rinse of the excess starch. This gives the pudding a better texture.

Now add milk, sugar, and cook on low until the milk is absorbed, the pudding thickened, and most of the tapioca pearls are completely transparent. Some of them might still have a white dot at the centers but that is all right.

It is important to stir constantly (a slow, gentle stir) and cook at a low temperature to avoid scorching.

At this point, add cardamom powder, vanilla essence, and continue stirring for a few minutes.

Remove from heat and cool.

Serve warm or chill with nuts and raisins on top as garnish.