Chilled Delicately Spiced Watermelon Soup

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It’s a sweltering 31 degrees today here in London, hotter than LA, Dallas and Bahamas and New York. I’m not complaining, although if I’m honest I wish we had a sea breeze keeping us cool, wouldn’t that be just perfect.  Thankfully I picked up a giant watermelon over the weekend (my pal took half as it was SO gigantic) so have been eating it in all manner of guises ever since.

As well as being so visually stunning watermelon is perfect for hot weather, due to its largely watery, cooling consistency. I wanted to make a savoury chilled soup that was delicately spiced and balanced sweet and savoury, not just sweet. I think I have managed it so would love you to try my recipe. Eat it as you would a chilled gazpacho, although the flavour of this is very different from anything you have probably tried before. It has sweet tones of course but has savoury notes coming from the fresh curry leaves, tomatoes, cumin seeds and hing/asafoetida. I’d love to hear what you think so please leave a message below in the comments box.

 

Chilled Spiced Watermelon Soup 

Serves 4

2 tbsp rapeseed oil

1 tsp cumin seeds

pinch of hing/asafoetida

10 fresh curry leaves

1 small birds eye green chilli, roughly chopped and deseeded

3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1.4kg fresh watermelon, deseeded and chopped into small pieces

3 medium sized tomatoes

1 tsp fresh ginger, finely grated

2 tbsp rapeseed oil

1 tsp cumin seeds

pinch of hing/asafoetida

10 fresh curry leaves

salt to taste

 

  1. First prepare all your ingredients and make sure they are chopped and ready to use.
  2. Heat a pan with the oil and when it is hot add the cumin seeds, the hing/asafoetida and the fresh curry leaves and move around the pan for 20 seconds, allowing the flavours to be released.
  3. Now add the garlic and after a couple of minutes add the ginger and tomatoes.
  4. Finally add the watermelon and a little salt. Allow to simmer on a low heat for 10 minutes.
  5. Using a hand blender blend the ingredients of the pan so the liquid is smooth.
  6. Using a colander strain all the liquid so that a lighter consistency liquid is released and any tomato skins, seeds etc are caught in the colander. Taste and season further with salt as necessary.
  7. Allow to cool and place in the fridge for a couple of hours.
  8. It will last for a couple of days in the fridge no problem.

 

As an idea you could add a feta crumb of fresh mint flakes on the top of each serving, but I preferred to eat it as is this time.

 

 

Watermelon, Feta, Black Olive, Mint and Lime Salad – a knockout combination

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OK, I take it all back. The weather gods have clearly been reading my blog so much so they have decided to let it shine big time. Ever since I wrote my blog about ‘Raoul’s Eggs Rock‘ and that it is incessantly raining, the sun has come out to the extent that it’s been a scorcher ever since. A few days ago London was hotter than the Caribbean, which is wonderful really wonderful, aside from the fact that England is not really set up for extreme conditions – hot or cold. Its been so humid I keep having to go down to our cellar to get some cool air. Even the paddling pool water has heated up to bath water temperature. I don’t know about you but when it is really hot and humid I really like eating mountains of fresh fruit. A huge bowl of sweet melon, mango, strawberries, raspberries and fresh mint always goes down a treat.

This inspired me to share one of my absolute favourite salads with you. I have been cooking it for years and then discovered that the ubiquitous kitchen goddess – Nigella – has a similar recipe. It combines fresh, cleansing watermelon with the salty robust feta cheese. The flavours combined are perfectly balanced, although I know its hard to believe. Then with lime juice, black olives, fresh mint and a splash of olive oil you have a heavenly dish.

Its simple to create, truly delicious and very memorable. Perfect for a light lunch or for an evening dinner served alongside some grilled chicken. Give it a try and let me know what you think.

Watermelon, Feta, Black Olive, Mint and Lime Salad

Serves 4

 1 mini watermelon (circa 2kg in weight), cubed

200g/8oz feta cheese, cubed

100/4oz black pitted olives

2 limes, squeezed

2 tbsp of olive oil

1 handful of fresh mint, torn into small pieces

1. Cut the watermelon into bite sized cubes and place in a bowl. Try not to handle it too much as it will begin to break and become more juice than melon.

2. Similarly cut the feta cheese into slightly smaller cubes than the watermelon. Place into the same bowl as the watermelon along with the black olives.

3. Squeeze the juice of two limes over the ingredients as well as 2 tbsp of olive oil. Using your hands mix into the ingredients gently.

4. Tear some fresh mint over the salad and serve.