One Square of Chocolate

One Square of Chocolate

During that first stay at Mido's farmhouse I learnt the secret of making delicious soup. It seemed so simple yet it tasted so good!

Lea's Favourite Leek, Potato and Carrot Soup

Trim and slice one or two leeks. Peel and cube two potatoes. Peel and slice two carrots. Place vegetables in a pan with a tablespoon of butter and stir on a low heat until the leek is wilted. Pour over 4 cups water or stock. Add 1 tablespoon chopped parsley, 1 bay leaf, a sprig of thyme, pinch of sea salt and a good grinding of pepper. Simmer, covered, for 15 minutes. Blend the cooked vegetables and stock into a puree and serve with an extra sprinkle of finely chopped parsley.

Cauliflower Soup

Cut half a cauliflower into small pieces. Slice one brown onion. Peel and slice two potatoes. Melt 25 gm butter in pan and add vegetables. Stir then add 4 cups water or stock, 1 bay leaf, a sprig of thyme , 1 tablespoon chopped parsley, pinch of sea salt, grind of pepper. simmer, covered, 20 minutes. Check seasoning. Blend to a puree and serve with a sprinkling of finely chopped parsley.

I asked Mido one night what she had eaten as a child. She told me that every day of the week except Sunday she ate bread, spread with butter and jam, dipped into warm milk for breakfast, then salad, bread, soup and cheese for lunch and salad, bread, soup and cheese for dinner. Dessert would be a piece of fruit. On Sundays her mother would cook a meat or chicken dish for lunch as well as the salad and there would be a tart or sweet pastry to finish the meal.

Mido remembered having to eat leftover cold French Onion Soup one day for breakfast. She could hardly swallow it but managed to finish her bowl before heading off to school.

Sitting in the large room at Soucieu that served as a dining and loungeroom, with one corner screened off for the kitchen and the tall wooden clock that reached to the ceiling standing close to one wall, we would watch the news on the television and share a block of chocolate. 

Mido only ever took one square with her tiny cup of strong black coffee. 

'Ca fait digerer les choses' she would say as she sipped appreciatively on the coffee.

Somehow Joel and I would manage to eat the rest of the block of chocolate. I always wondered what kind of strength did it take to only eat one square.