Strep throat survival soup, AKA Cream of Broccoli

 I have been plagued by a recurring bout of strep throat ever since mid August. I’m on my 3rd round of antibiotics now! Thankfully, the subsequent bouts have not been as bad as the first one, when this soup really was one of the few things I could eat that also filled me up and satisfied cravings for green food and protein. I have turned to it again this time around, knowing that if things get worse, this is one meal I will still be able to enjoy.

I had never made cream of broccoli soup before strep throat and I don’t know if it would taste so good if I wasn’t sick, but if you ever find yourself unable to eat solid or acidic foods and want something filling and hearty, I recommend it!

Here’s the original: https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/13313/best-cream-of-broccoli-soup/. I haven’t really made any changes to speak of.

Ingredients

• 2 + 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 onion, diced finely
• 1 stalk celery, diced finely diced
• 3 cups homemade chicken broth
• 8 cups broccoli, cut into small florets
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups milk
• Pepper to taste (if your throat can handle it)
• Salt to taste

Method

1. Melt 2 tbs butter in a med-large soup pot. Sauté onion and celery until tender.
2. Add the broth and the broccoli, cover with a lid, and simmer 10 minutes
3. Purée with an immersion blender until smooth
4. In a small pot, melt the remaining 3 tbs butter. Add the flour and whisk together. Add the milk and stir regularly while you heat this mixture until it starts thickening and gets a little frothy/bubbly. I use a small whisk for this.
5. Add the milk mixture to the broccoli part and stir well.
6. Optionally add some pepper and/or salt to the pot, or just do this when it’s in your bowl.

Feel better soon!

Sweet and Sticky Tofu bowls

 based on https://spicysouthernkitchen.com/asian-garlic-tofu/

Ingredients:

• 1 block of extra firm tofu
• 1-2 heads of broccoli cut into small florets
• 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
• 1 tbsp + 1 tbsp olive oil
• salt to taste
  
• rice
  

Sauce:

• 1/4 c hoisin sauce
• 2 tbs soy sauce
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp freshly grated ginger
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
  

 Garnish:

• Toasted sesame seeds
• diced spring onion or cilantro or...

Method:

1. Put the rice on to cook (and set a timer to cook for an appropriate amount of time.. no hand-holding on this part!)
   
2. Prepare tofu by slicing into 3 slabs horizontally, placing them on a clean folded tea towel on a large plate, place another clean tea towel on top followed by another plate, then put something heavy on top of that to press the excess water out. Leave for 10 - 30 minutes or more.
3. Meanwhile... mix together the sauce ingredients in a medium bowl.
   
4. Cut the tofu into small bite-sized cubes and toss in the sauce. Leave to marinate about 30 minutes
   
5. Meanwhile, prepare the broccoli for roasting by tossing in a bowl with 1 tbsp olive oil and salt to your taste. Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet and heat the oven to about 375F. 
   
6. Put broccoli in oven and roast for about 15-20 minutes then flip and roast a further 15-20 minutes on the other side (until crispy and tasty)
7. (This would be a good time to toast your sesame seeds in a dry frying pan if they're not ready yet)
   
8. Heat 1 tbs olive oil in a heavy-bottomed frying pan (cast iron or otherwise). When oil is hot, add in the tofu without too much of the sauce (but don't worry if a bunch goes in). Spread it out in a single layer and fry/sear (mine didn't get crispy since I put all the sauce in but it was still delish). Ideally, cook till crispy then flip to the other side and fry till seared.
9. At this point I would add the rest of the sauce to the pan and cook it a bit longer, stirring frequently.
10. Toss the sesame oil and diced spring onion/cilantro with the cooked tofu (either in the pan or a large bowl)
    
11. Assemble in bowls with rice, roasted broccoli, tofu, and sesame seeds sprinkled over top.