Hungarian Cauliflower soup with cheese gnocchi

Divine Cauliflower soup with sour cream and cheese gnocchi, the Hungarian way.

Hungarians love soups and eat them every day. These soups always use the seasonal vegetables and fruits. Thick, heavy, hearty soups for winter and light, cooling, refreshing soups for summer and everything else, between in autumn and at spring? Using the best of the fresh vegetables and fruits! 

Cauliflower is one of the cruciferous vegetables that are extremely good you and we all should be eating plenty of it!

Here is an old favourite recipe, how my Mum used to make it with a delicious addition! The cheese gnocchi that makes this soup even more delicious and a true favourite that will return on the family menu frequently!


Ingredients:
250g cauliflower
1 onion
1-2 carrots
1 parsnip
2 tablespoonful of olive oil
1 tablespoonful of flour of your choice
1 teaspoonful of Hungarian Paprika
2 tablespoonful of sour cream
1 litre of water
salt to taste
black pepper to taste
chicken or vegetable stock cube

Ingredients of the gnocchi:
1 egg
3g smoked cheese
salt to taste
2 tablespoonful of flour of your choice

To serve:
Finely chopped parsley or coriander

Cooking method:
Peel and slice the onion finely and sautee on the olive oil.
Break the cauliflower into small pieces, peel the carrots and parsnip and cut them into small slices. Add the washed and slices vegetables to the sauteed onion, add salt and pepper to taste and cook the mix for a few minutes.
Add water, add chicken or vegetables cube and cook until the vegetables just softened.
In the meantime, prepare the gnocchi. Whisk the egg with a pinch of salt, add the finely grated smoked cheese and the flour. If the mix is too soft, add flour. If too hard, add a little water.
Put another pan on the stove and in a heated olive oil brown a spoonful of flour, until golden brown. Take the pan off the stove to add the teaspoonful Hungarian Paprika so it does not burn and get bitter and burnt. Mix it with a wooden spoon and add 100ml water and mix it well. Add this paste to the gently simmering soup while gently, constantly stirring the soup.
Gently bring it to boiling point then with a small coffee/tea spoon cut and shape and add the gnocchi mix to the simmering soup and cook it for a few minutes, until the cheese gnocchi is cooked.
Serve this delicious soup with freshly chopped parsley or coriander and enjoy!

Kefir, the living food

Kefir is a living relationship, a symbiosis, of a number of bacteria and yeast which form grains or cauliflower-like structures.

These living organisms ferment milk into the living food, Kefir. The Kefir drink is lactic acid - alcoholic fermented milk.

Kefir grains are a biological production centre. Living foods like Kefir help to detoxify, support and balance digestion, and help in building up the immune system. to counteract negative influences.

During the fermentation process the Kefir grains change normal milk into Kefir beverage. Lactic acid, ethanol, acetic acid, carbon dioxide and other compounds are produced as well as vitamins.

The delicious microbiological living food Kefir can be very helpful in regenerating the bowel flora and works in this way, in many cases like a wonder.


How to make Kefir

What you will need:

• Kefir grains
• Milk - organic or normal (goat milk, coconut or almond milk can also be used with milk grains)
• Plastic (non-metallic) sieve/strainer
• 2 or 3 glass jars with lids (each jar should be about 500ml in size)

Instructions:

With 1 tablespoon of kefir grains add 250ml of milk to the kefir grans (or 1 teaspoon of kefir grans to 125ml of milk). The milk should be at room temperature (kefir grains prefer room temperature 20-27C).

Place the lid on your jar, keep it a little loose so that the kefir doesn't carbonate as much. Jars should be kept at least 2 cups (500ml in size) so that you have enough room for expansion of the kefir grains. 

Leave your kefir stand for 24hours or until the kefir thickens to your liking. The longer  you keep the kefir in the jar for the first ferment, the more sour your kefir will be. The jar should be kept at room temperature but not in direct sunlight. 

Once your kefir has shown signs of separation (you may see pockets of whey) or thickening, your kefir is ready.

Strain your kefir through a plastic sieve/strainer into a bowl, you may gently use a wooden or plastic spoon to help all the liquid go through the sieve, but be careful not to squash your grains while doing this. 

Place the grains into a clean jar and commence the process again. 

You can drink the kefir straight away or keep it in the fridge.

Please note at this stage you can add things to flavour your kefir like, vanilla, honey, cocoa, berries, apple, dates, lemon, orange peel, peppermint, garlic, ginger, or whatever you like! This is when the fun starts! Low sugar fruits are better as they will cause less carbonation from the lower sugar levels. 

Second fermentation:

If you wish to perform a second fermentation, you can leave your kefir on the counter for another 24 hours (without the grains). A second fermentation will give you a kefir lighter and creamier in texture. The second fermentation process also creates more B vitamins and probiotics. 

You also can second ferment adding flavours as mentioned above. Adding orange peel, ginger or anything you like will enhance flavours. You can leave the kefir with the additional fruit for a 4-12-hour period then store it in the fridge. 

To avoid damaging your grains, never add to freshly cleaned hot jar. To avoid this, always add the milk first to the jar before adding the kefir grains. Remember, room temperature milk is always kinder to the grains. 

If you don't wish to continue fermentation regularly, you will need to keep your grains in the milk in the fridge to keep them alive. You will need to change this milk every few days. Sometimes after the grains have bene kept in the fridge, it will take a few ferments for your kefir to be strong as it takes a little while for your kefir grains to wake up and adapt to the new environment. 

Once your kefir grains grow, keep adding more milk as they will ferment quicker. As a general rule, one tablespoon of grains for one cup of milk, (or 1 teaspoon for 1/2 cup of milk.) You always can give the extra grains to family and friend.

Finally, I hope you enjoy your kefir and all the health benefits that it brings to you and your family.