Curried Squash Soup

1 medium size squash
1 small onion chopped
1 vegetable bullion cube
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon red curry paste (for spicy soup) or ½ teaspoon (for less spicy soup)
Salt to taste
Water
Parsley to garnish


Cut squash and clean out the seeds. Peel the skin off and cut into smaller pieces. Put into a pot with enough water to just cover and bring to a boil. When squash is soft mash with a potato masher or fork. Add the onion, bullion cube, sugar, red curry paste and salt to taste. Add water if too thick. Simmer over a medium to low heat until onion is soft. Pour mixture into a blender and puree. Pour back into pot and simmer on low heat for about 5 min.

To serve, pour into soup bowls and garnish with a sprig of parsley.

Enjoy!

Caribbean Bread Pudding

Nice dessert for those hot summer days!

12 slices bread
2-3 tbsp butter or margarine
½ cup raisins
2 tbsp rum, sherry or wine
2 eggs
½ - ¾ cup brown sugar
½ tsp grated nutmeg
½ tsp grated cinnamon
1 ½ cups milk

Cut crust from bread (optional), butter and cut into cubes or strips. Layer bread and raisins in a greased baking dish. Repeat layers until all the ingredients are used up.

Beat eggs, milk and sugar together. Add a pinch of salt, the nutmeg, cinnamon and rum or wine. Pour milk mixture over bread, and raisins layers. Leave for ½ hr to set (optional).

Bake in a moderate oven 350 F for 35 – 45 minutes until firm.

Serve with ice cream or yogurt or pour Tia Maria or Amaretto Liquor over slice and serve with whipped cream.

Refrigerate unused pudding but warm before serving.

Enjoy!

Pumpkin Fritters

These fritters were always a favorite of mine growing up. I remember my mum making them especially on Sundays to go with our wonderful Sunday dinner. Seeing that fall is quicklly approaching and its soon time for pumpkin pies and jack-o-lanterns I thought this would be a good first recipe to post. I hope you enjoy them too.

1 ¼ lb pumpkin

½ cup sugar

¾ cup flour

½ tsp. grated nutmeg

¼ tsp. salt

1 egg

½ tsp. baking powder

oil for frying

Wash the pumpkin and peel. Steam the pumpkin until very soft. Mash with a fork or blend in blender until smooth. Add the sugar, flour, grated nutmeg, salt, baking powder, and egg. Mix well. Heat a shallow amount of oil in a pan. Drop by tablespoonful into hot oil and fry over a medium-low fire until golden brown on each side (turn once). Remove from pan and drain on paper towels. Sprinkle/dust with white sugar or icing sugar.