The Watercress Soup diet: week one
The first thing you need to know is how to make watercress soup!
Here is the soup recipe, exactly what you are allowed to eat on the first seven days of the diet and the lists of fruits and vegetables you can choose from.
Click on the links below for our picture galleries of the fruits and vegetables you can eat on the diet. Click on the links at the bottom of the page for recipes you can make with the foods you are allowed each day this week, tips on how to stick to the diet and for recipes for following weeks.
HOW TO MAKE WATERCRESS SOUP
Ingredients
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 ½ pints of light chicken stock or water
2 small potatoes, diced
3 large bunches of watercress, stems removed
salt and pepper
Method
Sweat the onion in two or three tablespoons of chicken stock or water. Add the potatoes together with the seasoning and the crock. Bring to the boil and simmer until
the potatoes are soft. Add the watercress, and stir for three minutes. Remove from the heat and blend in a liquidiser.
At this point, put the soup in a metal bowl and place it in a sink full of ice-cold water. This will keep the lovely green colour of the soup and make it even more appetising. The soup is delicious drink cold, but you can also heat it up if you wish to have it nice and hot.
WHAT TO EAT FOR THE FIRST WEEK
Day one
Unlimited watercress soup
Fruit from the Watercress Soup Diet Fruit List
250ml skimmed milk or fat-free yoghurt
Day two
Unlimited watercress soup
Vegetables from the Watercress Soup Diet Vegetable List
1 jacket potato
250ml skimmed milk or fat-free yoghurt
Day three
Unlimited watercress soup
Fruit from the Watercress Soup Diet Fruit List
Vegetables from the Watercress Soup Diet Vegetable List
250ml skimmed milk or fat-free yoghurt
Day four
Unlimited watercress soup
Five bananas
8 x 250ml servings of skimmed milk (you may, if you wish, replace one - but only one - of these servings of milk with a 250ml serving of fat-free yoghurt)
Day five
Unlimited watercress soup
As much white fish as you need to satisfy your hunger without overeating
As much skinless, lean chicken as you need to satisfy your hunger without overeating
Up to 6 fresh tomatoes, or 1 tin or tomatoes
250ml skimmed milk or fat-free yoghurt
Day six
Unlimited watercress soup
As much white fish as you need to satisfy your hunger without overeating
As much skinless, lean chicken as you need to satisfy your hunger without overeating
Vegetables from the Watercress Soup Diet Vegetable List, including tomatoes
250ml skimmed milk or fat-free yoghurt
Day seven
Unlimited watercress soup
Fruit from the Watercress Soup Diet Fruit List
Vegetables from the Watercress Soup Diet Vegetable List
250ml skimmed milk or fat-free yoghurt
THE WATERCRESS SOUP DIET VEGETABLE LIST
Artichokes, asparagus, aubergine, beans, beetroot, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celery, courgettes, cucumber, lettuce, mushrooms, onions, parsley, peppers, radishes, spinach, turnip, watercress.
THE WATERCRESS SOUP DIET FRUIT LIST
Apples, apricots, berries, blueberries, cherries, grapefruit, grapes, kiwi, lemons, melons, nectarines, oranges, peaches, pineapple, plums, raspberries, strawberries, tangerines.
The basics of the Watercress Soup Diet
The Watercress Soup Diet is not difficult, but you must follow it accurately to get results.
During the first week of the diet you can eat as much watercress soup as you want, at any time of the day, on any day of the week. Whenever you feel yourself getting hungry between meals, have a quick bowl of the soup and your hunger pangs will soon disappear.
But there is much more to the diet than just watercress soup. On most days, you are allowed to eat as much as you want of certain foods. Chicken is on the menu, as is fish, and loads of fruit and vegetables.
Click on the links on the right to see the fruit and vegetables you can eat on the diet.
Many people who follow the diet actually find that it gets them to change their eating habits almost immediately - the food really does taste that good.
After the first week you will slowly increase you calorie intake by choosing from a selection of delicious breakfast, lunch and dinner recipes for two weeks. You will find plenty of recipes for these two weeks at the bottom of this page.
Once you have completed the first three weeks of the diet it's essential not to fall back
into your old eating habits - or you will simply undo all your hard work.
You should try to eat a varied diet and if necessary fill up with red and green vegetables and fruit. You should try to eat less cheese and red meat and use less fat in cooking and spreading. It's fine to eat pasta and potatoes, but you should try to cut down on the amount you eat and consider the fat content of the sauces you eat with them.
To continue on the watercress soup diet you should try to eat no more than 1,500 calories a day. If you stick carefully to this sort of calorie intake you will be amazed at the difference in your body. Feel free to use some of the recipes you have already eaten throughout the diet.
Remember, if you want to shed more weight more quickly you can always return to the Watercress Soup Diet for another week - but you must always leave four weeks between each time you use it. Click on the link below to find out how to start the diet.
The Watercress Soup diet: weeks two and three
After the first intensive week on the diet you need to increase your calories quite slowly for the first two weeks, and then gradually move on to a more realistic diet.
So for the two weeks following the Watercress Soup Diet choose from the following ideas for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
You can also drink 150ml of skimmed milk and 150ml of very low fat yoghurt a day. All the recipes serve one person.
BREAKFASTS FOR WEEKS TWO AND THREE
Choice one
Half a honeydew melon, one large glass of unsweetened fruit juice, one
thin slice of wholemeal bread thinly spread with low fat spread and topped with Marmite or 15g honey.
Choice two
Fruit salad composed of half a mango, one kiwi fruit, one peach or nectarine and a small orange. Drizzle with 2 tbsp unsweetened orange juice and top with 1 tbsp natural Greek yoghurt.
Choice three
One small poached egg served on one thin slice of wholemeal bread, one large glass of unsweetened fruit juice.
Choice four
One thin slice of wholemeal bread with low fat spread, one small bunch of grapes.
Choice five
25g unsweetened muesli topped with one chopped apple and skimmed or semi-skimmed milk taken from your allowance.
Choice six
150ml low fat fruit yoghurt, one large glass of unsweetened fruit juice.
Choice seven
Two thin rashers very thinly cut bacon, grilled; 2 grilled cherry tomatoes; 2 grilled mushrooms; 1 thin slice of wholemeal bread; 1 large glass of unsweetened fruit juice.
LUNCHES FOR WEEKS TWO AND THREE
Choice one
Two Ryvitas or low calorie crispbreads topped with cottage cheese and garnished with raw peppers, celery, tomatoes and/or radish. Serve with a generous portion of watercress dressed with lemon juice or low calorie dressing. One orange.
Choice two
Bowl of watercress soup with one thin slice of wholemeal bread. One kiwi fruit
Choice three
Mediterranean salad composed of crisp lettuce, watercress, tomato, cucumber and raw pepper slices, about 30g blanched green
beans, one small hard-boiled egg and a very small portion of tuna canned in brine (drained). Drizzle with one tsp of fat-free dressing or lemon juice; one small very low fat yoghurt.
Choice four
Wholemeal sandwich (no more than 50g of bread) with low-fat spread and filled with thinly sliced chicken or turkey (no skin) and topped with sliced cucumber.
Choice five
One thin slice of wholemeal bread, toasted and spread with low fat spread and topped with one small poached egg; watercress and tomato salad; 90g black grapes.
Choice six
One medium jacket potato, cooked and the flesh mixed with one small carton of cottage cheese and sprinkled with chopped chives. Serve with a watercress salad, dressed with a low-calore dressing or lemon juice; two fresh apricots (or canned in their own juice).
Daily bunch of watercress 'can cut cancer risk'
Last updated at 21:10 15 February 2007
A bowl of watercress every day cut the damage to blood cells by a fifth.
Eating watercress every day could help protect against cancer, say researchers.
The vegetable reduces damage to DNA in cells, according to a British trial.
• The breast cancer breakthrough saving 1,000 women a year
Some nutritionists claim higher intakes of 'superfoods' - including cruciferous vegetables such as watercress and broccoli - can improve the body's defences against cancer.
But specialists in the disease have sounded a note of caution, warning that consumers are being misled into thinking that superfoods will prevent them contracting cancer, rather than reducing the risk.
Blood tests were taken at the start and end of the trial, which was carried out by researchers from the University of Ulster.
The tests showed a 23 per cent reduction in DNA damage to white blood cells - which is regarded as a marker for susceptibility to cancer - among the watercress eaters.
When the same cells were exposed to damaging free radicals, scientists observed a 10 per cent cut in damage compared with cells of those eating a normal diet. They also found a rise of up to 100 per cent in levels of anti-oxidants, chemicals which help cells to defend themselves against damage.
The research, which was funded by British watercress suppliers, found smokers gained most from a watercress-rich diet - probably because the habit depletes anti-oxidants.
Professor Ian Rowland, who led the study, said the results were 'highly significant' because they were found in a real life situation.
Most previous research in the area has been conducted in test tubes or in animals, using chemicals derived from cruciferous vegetables.
He said benefits were slightly reduced for those eating cooked watercress - such as actress Elizabeth Hurley, who has been known to drink seven cups of watercress soup a day.
But Karol Sikora, professor of cancer medicine at Imperial College London, said the findings of the study were 'grossly overstated'.
He added: 'We know that fruits and vegetables all do affect DNA damage, hence the five-a- day strategy to prevent cancer.
'There is absolutely nothing special about watercress. I don't think people will seriously convert to eating 85g of the stuff each day. That's an awful lot of cress!
You might even turn green. Much better to look holistically at your diet and ensure that there's plenty of fruit and vegetables, fibre and as little fat as possible.'
Dr Anthea Martin, of Cancer Research UK, said: 'While the results of this study are interestingit involved a relatively small number of people.
'Larger studies are needed to determine whether the effects of watercress on cells seen by the researchers translate into a decreased risk of developing cancer.'
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A Connecticut federal judge has ordered Bronson Partners (dba New England Diet Center and Bronson Day Spa) and Martin Howard to pay $2 million to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and granted the FTC's request to prohibit the company from continuing to sell its products. They are based in Westport, Connecticut.
PHILADELPHIA - The proceedings of hospital quality care committees are exempt from discovery in California - which may not be waived - the federal fen-phen multidistrict litigation judge ruled in a Dec. 21 opinion in a case involving lung transplantation in a former diet drug user (In Re: Diet Drugs [Phentermine/Fenfluramine/Dexfenfluramine] Products Liability Litigation, MDL Docket No. 1203, Joanne and Jon Justice v. Wyeth, et al., No. 2:07-cv-20156, E.D. Pa.; 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 119925).Full story on lexis.com
PHILADELPHIA - A Utah woman's claims that she suffers shortness of breath, swollen ankles and other symptoms are barred by the American Home Products national diet drug settlement because she revoked her initial opt out, the judge supervising the federal multidistrict litigation said in a Dec. 4 opinion (In Re: Diet Drugs [Phentermine/Fenfluramine/Dexfenfluramine] Products Liability Litigation, MDL Docket No. 1203, Judy Velarde v. A.H. Robins Company Inc., et al., No. 98-20200, E.D. Pa.).Full story on lexis.com
PHILADELPHIA - A company that buys attorneys' interests in future legal fees argues in a Dec. 30 motion to remand that its claims against Wyeth and the American Home Products Settlement Trust do not belong in the diet drugs multidistrict litigation (In Re: Diet Drugs [Phentermine/Fenfluramine/Dexfenfluramine] Products Liability Litigation, MDL Docket No. 1203; Benjamin C. Riggs Jr. d/b/a Resource Management Company v. Wyeth Inc., et al., No. 2:09-cv-20008, E.D. Pa.).Full story on lexis.com
PHILADELPHIA - A woman alleging that she developed primary pulmonary hypertension (PPH) as a consequence of using Wyeth's diet drugs failed to rule out other possible causes of her elevated pulmonary pressure as required by the national diet drug settlement, Wyeth says in a Dec. 29 motion (In Re: Diet Drugs [Phentermine/Fenfluramine/Dexfenfluramine] Products Liability Litigation, MDL Docket No. 1203, Sheila Brown, et al. v. American Home Products Corp., No. 99-20593, Yolanda Anaya, et al. v. Wyeth, et al., No. 2:09-CV-20006, E.D. Pa.).Full story on lexis.com
SAN DIEGO - The first complaints to be filed directly into new Hydroxycut multidistrict litigation, both asserting claims for personal injury involving liver damage, were filed Dec. 15 and 16 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California (In Re: Hydroxycut Marketing and Sales Practices Litigation, MDL No. 2087, S.D. Calif.; See November 2009, Page 4).Full story on lexis.com
NEW YORK - The Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Dec. 14 reinstated putative class claims against distributors of Steroid Hormone Products that had been dismissed sua sponte in the ephedra multidistrict litigation for failure to prosecute (Shawn Brown, et al. v. General Nutrition Companies Inc., et al., Nos. 08-4202-cv, 08-4204-cv, 08-4207-cv, 08-4209-cv, 2nd Cir.).Full story on lexis.com
BOSTON - A federal judge in Massachusetts has allowed most consumer fraud claims to proceed against the Canadian developer of such diet supplement products as Slimquick and Liquid Hoodia, saying in a Dec. 14 opinion that at this point in the proceedings, plaintiffs had pleaded adequate causes of action (In re: WellNx Marketing and Sales Practices Litigation, No. 07-md-1861, D. Mass.).Full story on lexis.com
NEW YORK - A malpractice insurer may not avoid coverage solely because the underlying complaint was crafted to assert noncovered claims, a diet drug plaintiff law firm says in a Dec. 9 brief (Westport Insurance Corporation v. Napoli, Kaiser & Bern, et al., No. 09-cv-7433, S.D. N.Y.; See December 2009, Page 6).Full story on lexis.com
NEW ORLEANS - A Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel on Jan. 8 became the second federal appeals court in seven weeks to rule that failure-to-warn claims against generic drug manufacturers are not preempted, expanding last year's brand-name drug preemption ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court to generic drug makers (Julie Demahy v. Actavis, Inc., No. 08-31204, 5th Cir.; 2020 U.S. App. LEXIS 430).Full story on lexis.com
SAN DIEGO - Saying it has no contacts with New York that would confer jurisdiction, a Canadian company in a Nov. 30 motion in federal court seeks dismissal of claims stemming from marketing of the over-the-counter weight-loss Hydroxycut products (In Re: Hydroxycut Marketing and Sales Practices Litigation, MDL No. 2087, Richard A. Bough v. Kerr Investment Holding Corp., et al., No. 09-CV-2511, Martin Robertson, et al. v. Iovate Health Sciences Inc. et al., No. 09-CV-2508, S.D. Calif.; See October 2009, Page 10).Full story on lexis.com
PHILADELPHIA - The $414 million final award of common benefit fees in consolidated diet drug litigation was based on exaggerated benefits to the class, an objector seeking to reduce the award says in a Nov. 4 concise statement to the Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals (In Re: Diet Drugs [Phentermine/Fenfluramine/Dexfenfluramine] Products Liability Litigation, MDL Docket No. 1203, Sheila Brown, et al. v. American Home Products Corp., No. 99-20593, E.D. Pa., Sharon Bridgewater, et al., appellants, No. 09-3818, 3rd Cir.; See September 2009, Page 8).Full story on lexis.com
PHILADELPHIA - A claimant has withdrawn her motion seeking to order the trust administering the American Home Products national fen-phen settlement to issue a final determination on her heart surgery claim, saying in her Nov. 16 withdrawal that the trust acted Nov. 10 (In Re: Diet Drugs [Phentermine/Fenfluramine/Dexfenfluramine] Products Liability Litigation, MDL Docket No. 1203, Sheila Brown, et al. v. American Home Products Corp., No. 99-20593, E.D. Pa.; See November 2009, Page 6).Full story on lexis.com
NEW YORK - A legal malpractice insurer says in a Nov. 25 brief that a previous order to provide malpractice coverage to a diet drug plaintiff law firm was predicated solely on a claim for breach of fiduciary duty that was not included in a second complaint asserting the same underlying facts for which the insurer seeks to avoid coverage (Westport Insurance Corporation v. Napoli, Kaiser & Bern, et al., No. 09-cv-7433, S.D. N.Y.; See November 2009, Page 8).Full story on lexis.com
ST. LOUIS - Federal law does not preempt state court failure-to-warn claims against generic drug manufacturers, a panel of the Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled Nov. 27, extending the U.S. Supreme Court's preemption ruling in Wyeth v. Diana Levine (No. 06-1249, U.S. Sup.; 2009 U.S. LEXIS 1774; See March 2009, Page 4) to generic drugs (Gladys Mensing v. Wyeth, Inc., et al., No. 08-3850, 8th Cir.).Full story on lexis.com
ROCKVILLE, Md. - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration notified health care professionals and patients Nov. 20 that it is reviewing preliminary data suggesting that people using sibutramine have a higher number of cardiovascular events than those using a placebo. The FDA reiterated its warning that, per the drug's labeling information, it should be avoided by people with a history of coronary artery disease, heart disease, congestive heart failure (CHF), arrhythmias or stroke.Full story on lexis.com
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Saying a recent study confirms the risks of Abbott Laboratories Inc.'s weight-loss drug Meridia (sibutramine), the consumer organization Public Citizen's Health Research Group on Dec. 3 again called for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to immediately ban the drug.Full story on lexis.com
PHILADELPHIA - The federal judge supervising multidistrict litigation over Wyeth's diet drugs on Oct. 13 remanded claims that the drugs caused a Nevada woman's primary pulmonary hypertension (PPH) with at least one dispute unresolved (In Re: Diet Drugs [Phentermine/Fenfluramine/Dexfenfluramine] Products Liability Litigation, MDL Docket No. 1203, Cynthia Righetti v. Wyeth Inc., et al., No. 07-20144, E.D. Pa.; See October 2009, Page 8).Full story on lexis.com
PHILADELPHIA - The failure of the administratrix of a Georgia woman's estate to opt out of the American Home Products (AHP) national settlement is fatal to her claims, the judge supervising the litigation said in an Oct. 23 decision (In Re: Diet Drugs [Phentermine/Fenfluramine/Dexfenfluramine] Products Liability Litigation, MDL Docket No. 1203, Carrie Richards v. Wyeth, et al., No. 05-25157, E.D. Pa.; 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 100028).Full story on lexis.com
PHILADELPHIA - The unsupported affidavit of a disbarred physician is insufficient proof that plaintiffs used Wyeth's diet drugs, the judge supervising multidistrict litigation (MDL) ruled in dismissing the claims on Oct. 23 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (In Re: Diet Drugs [Phentermine/Fenfluramine/Dexfenfluramine] Products Liability Litigation, MDL Docket No. 1203, Anthony Smith, et al. v American Home Products Corporation, et al., No. 04-20219, E.D. Pa.; 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 100029).Full story on lexis.com
PHILADELPHIA - Saying a pharmaceutical sales representative was unaware of the risks of Wyeth's diet drugs and therefore fraudulently joined, the judge supervising the multidistrict litigation over the drugs on Oct. 26 denied remand of personal injury claims to a Louisiana woman (In Re: Diet Drugs [Phentermine/Fenfluramine/Dexfenfluramine] Products Liability Litigation, MDL Docket No. 1203, Brunetta Adams v. Wyeth, et al., No. 04-29688, E.D. Pa.; 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 100661).Full story on lexis.com
PHILADELPHIA - A claimant says in a Nov. 6 motion that the trust administering the American Home Products national fen-phen settlement has refused to issue a final determination on her heart-surgery claim, preventing her from seeking review of its decision or receiving the reduced award the trust has approved (In Re: Diet Drugs [Phentermine/Fenfluramine/Dexfenfluramine] Products Liability Litigation, MDL Docket No. 1203, Sheila Brown, et al. v. American Home Products Corp., No. 99-20593, E.D. Pa.).Full story on lexis.com
PHILADELPHIA - The American Home Products Settlement Trust cannot say the Seventh Amendment to the settlement bars her claims and at the same time say she is not part of the Seventh Amendment, the widow of a former diet drug user says in an Oct. 20 brief filed in the diet drug multidistrict litigation court in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (In Re: Diet Drugs [Phentermine/Fenfluramine/Dexfenfluramine] Products Liability Litigation, MDL Docket No. 1203, Sheila Brown, et al. v. American Home Products Corp., No. 99-20593, E.D. Pa.; See October 2009, Page 5).Full story on lexis.com
NEW YORK - A legal malpractice insurer can't evade coverage for a second lawsuit asserting the same underlying facts as a lawsuit the insurer was previously ordered to defend, a diet drug plaintiff law firm says in a motion for summary judgment filed Nov. 4 in federal court (Westport Insurance Corporation v. Napoli, Kaiser & Bern, et al., No. 09-cv-7433, S.D. N.Y.).Full story on lexis.com
SILVER SPRING, Md. - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced the Safe Use Initiative on Nov. 4, aimed at reducing the likelihood of preventable harm from medication use.Full story on lexis.com
LONDON - A Danish study published Nov. 7 in The Lancet online has found that the diabetes drug liraglutide helped obese subjects lose nearly 16 pounds in five months, reduce their blood pressure and reduce "prediabetes," defined by the American Diabetes Association as "blood glucose levels that are higher than normal but not yet high enough to be diagnosed as diabetes."Full story on lexis.com
HCG Diet Direct responds to questions from dieters and potential dieters about zero calorie and low calorie food products. (PRWeb Jan 30, 2010)
Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/hcg-diet/homeopathic-hcg/prweb3538494.htm
HCG Diet Direct cites dangers of obesity in comparison to smoking. A new study indicates that obesity is more dangerous to the health of individuals and society as a whole than smoking. (PRWeb Jan 28, 2010)
Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/hcg-diet-direct/hcg-drops/prweb3533424.htm
Formerly 260 pounds and having tried every diet under the sun, Danielle Bultron knows what it takes to lose weight and become fit. Danielle is passionate about training and lives to inspire those who want to transform themselves. (PRWeb Jan 28, 2010)
Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/2010/01/prweb3467514.htm
Easy Home Recipe Gets More Fruit in the Diet (PRWeb Jan 28, 2010)
Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/Chile_Chilean/Fresh_Fruit/prweb3530604.htm
The level of focus and investment of resources should be as high as we have invested in any war. When you are at war the whole nation is focused on success and works together to achieve this goal. Unfortunately we have major food companies who are not pulling our way and they need to join the fight against overweight and obesity. (PRWeb Jan 27, 2010)
Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/2010/01/prweb3521194.htm
HCG Diet Direct releases top 5 ways to eat healthy on a budget. Eating healthy in today’s society is often seen as a luxury that most can’t afford. The obvious cheap options provided by fast food and popular restaurants do offer the benefit of low expenditures, but they come with a high price when it comes to the general health of consumers. (PRWeb Jan 26, 2010)
Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/hcg-diet/hcg-diet-direct/prweb3521414.htm
The Body Fat Solution hard cover became an instant #1 Amazon bestseller. Now, available in paperback, and featuring new bonus weekly fat-burning meal plans, the message has never been more clear: much of what people are told about health, fitness and diet is ineffective and often wrong. http://www.thebodyfatsolution.com (PRWeb Jan 26, 2010)
Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/weightloss/bodyfat/prweb3521434.htm
Zone diet creator Dr. Barry Sears says, "Health-care reform has to begin in the kitchen. The Perfect Nutritional Storm can be reversed by addressing its root cause: Increased silent inflammation generated by increased toxic fat levels in Americans." (PRWeb Jan 26, 2010)
Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/2010/01/prweb3513444.htm
Club One Launches Lite N’ Up Program at three of their Premiere Clubs. (PRWeb Jan 25, 2010)
Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/2010/01/prweb3499154.htm
Author Emma Deangela, the Alkaline Diet, launched the 2nd edition of her book and filled her website with alkaline dieting and healthy living tips. Different alternative health writers and practitioners are also invited to share and build a health and dieting community. (PRWeb Jan 25, 2010)
Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/alkalinediet/alkalinefoods/prweb3505504.htm
We often have chili cook-offs at our church, so we trade lots of different recipes. I was always mixing and matching ingredients and experimenting, trying to come up with an original recipe that would be a little different. That's how I developed this one, and I never fail to get compliments on it!
I recently came across this fantastic article on yahoo where the author speaks to easy to follow exercises . With summer here, its time to think about slimming down and getting ready for the beach. We all know there is no magic bullet or cure-all diet that works overnight, but there are some things [...]
People's preferences for current vs. later rewards may be influenced by blood glucose levels: Volunteers who drank a regular soda (and therefore had higher blood glucose levels) were more likely to select receiving more money at a later date while the volunteers who drank a diet soda (containing artificial sweetener) were likelier to opt for receiving smaller sums of money immediately. |
From Page 4
[Chef Jean-Francois Vachon's onion soup. Allen McInnis / Canwest News Service]
By Lesley Chesterman, Canwest News Service
If ever there were a peak season for onion soup, it’s now. Hot, rich, potent and delicious, this French classic warms the cockles faster than even the priciest thermal underwear. If there’s a better après-ski or après-tobogganing soup out there, I have yet to spoon it up with frost-bitten fingers.
My first taste of onion soup this winter was not in Montreal, but at the chic Washington, D.C., brasserie Centrale. Served in a ceramic bowl and made with a brown chicken stock and caramelized onions topped with the requisite gratinéed crouton raft, this rendition was as authentic as it gets. I munched, slurped and sipped it, revelling in all its sensual textures.
It was pretty perfect, but all taken, it was plain ol’ onion soup. Underwhelmed, I set out on one task on my return home: Give onion soup a makeover.
I enlisted four Montreal chefs to help me on my quest: Jean-François Vachon of M Sur Masson, David Ferguson of Le Jolifou, Alexandre Loiseau of Cocagne and Alexandre Gosselin of Bar & Boeuf. Onion soup is a beginner-level dish, so I was curious to see how four advanced cooks would upgrade this classic.
In The French Cook, written by François Pierre La Varenne in 1651, there’s a recipe for onion soup that doesn’t divert much from the onion soup sold at the corner bistro today. On this side of the Atlantic, however, onion soup really hit the big time in the 1960s, when French cooking was all the rage in the United States.
You’ll find the dish in most old-fashioned French restaurants, but to my surprise, several of Montreal’s hipper establishments are serving the signature broth, too, and not necessarily just in winter. At M Sur Masson, it’s on the menu all year long.
‘‘We serve it at lunch, dinner and brunch,†Vachon says. “And it’s not uncommon for customers to order onion soup in July, followed by a duck confit risotto.’’
I can imagine enjoying Vachon’s soup any day. The most classic of the four proffered by my chosen chefs, the soup is spiked with port and grape must (vincotto) and calls for the highly aromatic Gruyère de Grotte on the final gratinée. Vachon’s recipe is inspired by the onion soup recipe in The Balthazar Cookbook (Clarkson Potter, 2003), yet his addition of the stronger Gruyère works beautifully with the boozy broth.
Ferguson also features onion soup at Le Jolifou, but only in cold months. As his style could best be described as French/Tex-Mex, the chef’s rendition includes unusual ingredients like avocado, ham hock and a smoky/spicy powder made from ancho peppers. And in yet another unusual twist, Ferguson deglazes his onions with half a bottle of beer (the other half can be enjoyed with the soup, he says).
At Cocagne, Loiseau’s soup is also good fun as he calls for three kinds of onions (including shallots and cipollini) simmered in duck stock. A poached egg is added to the mix, and Loiseau ditches the standard gratinéed crouton in favour of a grilled cheese sandwich served alongside. Instead of the usual Gruyère, Comtè or Emmenthal cheese, the chef uses the Quebec cheese Pikauba made by Fromagerie Lehmann, which also produces Kenogami.
Yet the award for most original take on the soup goes to Bar & Boeuf’s Gosselin, who serves his onion soup on a plate with a knife and fork. A knife and fork? Yes! Titled the Compression of Onion Soup, Gosselin’s dish features veal stock thickened with agar agar that’s rolled in bread crumbs and deep-fried to produce soup-filled croquettes. The chef places three of them on a plate alongside a purée of onions and a thick slab of bacon braised in wine and garlic. Slices of Migneron cheese are then draped atop each ball, and thyme sprigs as well as tiny cubes of red wine jelly are used to decorate.
We’re miles away from Julia Child here or even that soup I tasted in Washington. But when the textures and flavours mingle on the palate, there’s no doubt this is onion soup.
Though Gosselin offered me his recipe, I’m sure even the most advanced cook would wither under the challenge. Instead, try it at Bar & Boeuf. As well, so enamoured was Gosselin with the dish he created for this challenge, he now offers it on his menu, and plans to feature it as well at his new restaurant called BBQ on St. Paul St.
As for the other three soups, you can either try them in their respective restaurants, or give them a go in your home kitchen. And hold on to these recipes. Now may be the peak time for onion soup, but I wouldn’t turn it down on a breezy summer’s night.
M sur Masson’s Onion Soup with Gruyère de Grotte
You can find Gruyère de Grotte at any cheese shop and vincotto at most specialty gourmet shops.
- 3 tsp (15 mL) butter
- 3 large Spanish onions, peeled and thinly sliced
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 large garlic clove, peeled and minced
- 1 glass (about 200 mL) of dry white wine
- ¼ cup (50 mL) vincotto (wine must)
- 4 cups (1 L) brown chicken stock, either homemade or store-bought (available in most better butcher shops)
- ½ cup (125 mL) port
- salt and freshly ground pepper
- 6 slices toasted country bread
- 10 oz (about 300g) grated Gruyère de Grotte cheese
- a few spoonfuls of chopped parsley
1. In a large pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onions all at once and cook, stirring regularly until they are very soft and lightly caramelized, about 30 to 45 minutes.
2. Add the bay leaf, garlic, white wine and vincotto and cook for another five minutes. Add the chicken stock and let simmer for 30 minutes.
3. When ready to serve: Remove the bay leaf, add the port and season to taste. Divide the soup into six bowls, cover each with a slice of bread and cover generously with gruyère. Place under the broiler for about 2 minutes or just until the cheese is melted and lightly golden. Sprinkle over a bit of parsley and serve immediately. Serves 6
Lesley Chesterman is The Gazette’s Fine Dining critic.
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