At this time of year one vegetable we look forward to is the courgette or marrow. I must admit that until we started growing our own, It had never occurred to me that they are one and the same plant. I know there are special cultivars which suit either end of the growth scale but in essence a courgette is a baby marrow.
We normally grow two marrow plants as they produce well in our warm and damp climate. We have more than enough courgettes for salads and stir fries and sufficient marrows for soups, stuffing and sauté. This year Luis mistakenly planted 4 thinking that two were squash. We decided to keep the four plants so we are poised for the onslaught.
With the dehydrator, freezer and juicer we should soon, cook, consume or store most of what grows, the rest we will distribute to neighbours and friends.
Cream of Marrow Soup
One of my favourite recipes with marrow is soup. A cream of marrow soup that is so easy to prepare, freezes well and tastes delicious. It can be served hot or cold and tastes very different each way.
1 medium to large marrow (best before pips form and harden)
1 large onion
2 cheese triangles (this gives it the creaminess but can be omitted for lower fat)
Splash of oil
vegetable stock cube quenelles (Home made - link here)
200-250 ml of water
salt and pepper to taste.
Coarsely chop all ingredients, bring to boil, simmer for 20 mins until the marrow skins are soft, take of heat and leave to cool for 20 mins. Blitz with blender. This recipe serves from 4-6 people.
Marrow fritter
Another delicious way of using a young marrow is to slice it thinly about half a centimetre, dust in flour (plain, gram or corn) seasoned with a little salt and pepper, dip into beaten egg and lightly fry in olive oil. Turning when browned. As they are cooked, place on a plate and separate layers with kitchen towel until ready to serve. Spices can be added to the flour but be careful not to overpower the delicate sweet taste of the marrow.
This next basket of freshly picked goodies: lettuce, small marrow, basil, beetroot and fennel are to juice for a delicious sweet glass of pure heaven. It always surprises me how you can still taste the individual ingredients at different depths as your taste buds go into over-drive. No more sugar laden commercial juices from now on.
We normally grow two marrow plants as they produce well in our warm and damp climate. We have more than enough courgettes for salads and stir fries and sufficient marrows for soups, stuffing and sauté. This year Luis mistakenly planted 4 thinking that two were squash. We decided to keep the four plants so we are poised for the onslaught.
With the dehydrator, freezer and juicer we should soon, cook, consume or store most of what grows, the rest we will distribute to neighbours and friends.
Cream of Marrow Soup
One of my favourite recipes with marrow is soup. A cream of marrow soup that is so easy to prepare, freezes well and tastes delicious. It can be served hot or cold and tastes very different each way.
1 medium to large marrow (best before pips form and harden)
1 large onion
2 cheese triangles (this gives it the creaminess but can be omitted for lower fat)
Splash of oil
vegetable stock cube quenelles (Home made - link here)
200-250 ml of water
salt and pepper to taste.
Coarsely chop all ingredients, bring to boil, simmer for 20 mins until the marrow skins are soft, take of heat and leave to cool for 20 mins. Blitz with blender. This recipe serves from 4-6 people.
Marrow fritter
Another delicious way of using a young marrow is to slice it thinly about half a centimetre, dust in flour (plain, gram or corn) seasoned with a little salt and pepper, dip into beaten egg and lightly fry in olive oil. Turning when browned. As they are cooked, place on a plate and separate layers with kitchen towel until ready to serve. Spices can be added to the flour but be careful not to overpower the delicate sweet taste of the marrow.
This next basket of freshly picked goodies: lettuce, small marrow, basil, beetroot and fennel are to juice for a delicious sweet glass of pure heaven. It always surprises me how you can still taste the individual ingredients at different depths as your taste buds go into over-drive. No more sugar laden commercial juices from now on.
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| Ready for cleaning before juicing |
Do you ever make marrow and ginger jam? It's beautiful.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds wonderful - do you have a recipe? If you get the chance please email it:
ReplyDeletemail @ ianandluis.info
Many thanks