sunday supper

Another guest appearance from Sarah...

Miriam was down in Christchurch for the weekend and after an afternoon trawling the shops we were all in need of some sustenance. I decided to make a pot of Mexican spiced tomato soup and a batch of cheese scones to go on the side. The soup is based on a Sophie Gray recipe from her book Enjoy, as are the scones. It is very simple and makes a tasty weekend meal. I used to make it frequently for my flat during the cold Dunedin winters. The meat eaters in the house added some fried Italian pork sausage to their bowl.

Last summer I worked in a café in Wellington. After receiving numerous requests from customers, I began making cheese scones. These proved hugely popular and in the end I was making dozens of batches a day. They are very easy and delicious warm from the oven with butter. This time I put some of Becs’ homemade tomato chili jam on top of the scones before baking, which was tasty.

Best-ever Cheese Scones

2 cups self raising flour, 2 cups grated cheese, plus extra for sprinkling (I used a mixture of Colby and Parmesan), pinch salt, 1¼ cups milk

Preheat oven to 200^oC

Mix together flour and cheese. Add milk and mix until just combined. Shape, place on a tray and sprinkle with extra cheese. (I sometimes put a dollop of chutney or pesto on top as well). Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until well risen and crusty.

Mexican spiced tomato soup

2 tbsp olive oil, 2 onions, finely chopped, 1 cup celery, finely chopped, 2 carrots, finely chopped, 3 gloves garlic, 2 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp chili powder, 1 tsp oregano, 2 tsp sugar, ½ tsp salt, 2 tins chopped tomatoes, 6 cups beef stock, 1/3 cup tomato paste, 1½ cups red lentils, 2 tbsp brown sugar

Optional - Italian pork sausages, 1 per person (Split the skins and squeeze out the meat. Crumble into small pieces and fry in a pan.)

Sauté onions, celery, carrots and garlic in oil until soft. Combine cumin, chili, oregano, sugar and salt and stir into pot. Add tomatoes, stock, tomato paste, lentils and brown sugar. Bring to the boil and stir, then reduce the temperature and simmer for 40 minutes. Garnish with chopped parsley.