Cauliflower and Macadamia soup

   Today Tim and l decided that we were sick of cowering away from the dastardly weather and we were going to embrace the howling wind and driving rain and revisit the beautiful rocky coastline and see it in its winter glory. So off to Merchant Rocks we went, considerably more clothed than when we last went there with our friends, De and Stan (who have since done the sensible thing and headed to Broome).  The last time we were there we picnicked on the rocks which sheltered us from the hot sun and intermittently threw in a line and shark spotted for Stan while he was spear fishing. So the contrast was worth experiencing. So wild and raw and of course breathtaking. Merchant Rocks is part of the national park about 20 mins off Caves Road South of Margaret River. There is also a fantastic camp ground there called Conto which is run by National Parks and is available for caravans and campers for a small fee.
By the time we got back to our cosy little van it was time to whip up another tummy warming meal. Leaping out to me from my fridge was the whole cauliflower l brought from the market for only 1 dollar and of course it was begging to be made into a hearty soup. I dont think people realise how easy it is to make a delicious soup with minimum ingredients, but l encourage you to just give it a try. I use pretty much the same recipe and adapt it to any vegetable that takes my fancy, but my main stay is what l call my magic powder, Vegeta stock powder. This stock powder is something l would recommend any traveller take with them, it adds flavour and the special touch to any savoury dish. Anyway l waffle on, so here is my recipe for cauliflower and macadamia soup.

1 whole medium size cauliflower
1 onion chopped
1 clove garlic sliced
3 med peeled potatoes chopped
2 tabs vegeta stock powder
2 teas curry powder
100 gms macadamia nuts ( l use salted and roasted ) ground.

In medium pot add a little butter and olive oil. Add onion, garlic and potatoes and fry for a few minutes.

Add cut up cauliflower, curry powder, vegeta and cover with water, Add nuts and simmer for approx 20 mins. Taste at this stage and season to taste or add more curry or vegeta, its up to you really. Remove form stove and use stab blender to turn this into a creamy delicious soup, adding more water if needed.

As l said you can adapt this recipe to other vegetables in season, l love using zucchini by just using the onions potato and vegeta and 1 teas dried chilly flakes and zucchini, so simple, or broccolli soup just omit the chilli, as l said just experiment and see what you can come up with. easy peasy.