Tuscan bean soup

Tuscan bean soup
This soup, ribollita, is thick, filling, nutritious, and delicious. It is even wonderful
at room temperature.

1⁄4 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, sliced
1 leek, white and pale green parts only, sliced
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 quart (1 liter) chicken stock
one 14.5oz (411g) can chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp tomato paste
one 15oz (420g) can white kidney (cannellini) beans, drained and rinsed
9oz (250g) spinach, sliced
salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 slices Italian bread
2 tbsp grated Parmesan (optional), for serving
Heat the oil in a soup pot over medium-low heat. Add the onion, carrots, and leek and cook
until softened but not colored. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the stock, tomatoes and their juices, and tomato paste. In a bowl, mash half the beans with a fork and stir into the pot. Bring to a boil over high heat.
Return the heat to medium-low and simmer for 30 minutes. Add the remaining beans and spinach and simmer for 30 minutes more.Place a slice of bread in each soup bowl. Ladle in the soup, and, if you like, top with a sprinklingof Parmesan.  Good with a dollop of pesto placed on top and olive oil passed on the side.
Prepare ahead this soup is best made ahead and reheated.

Mushroom Soup (Hubova Polievka)

Mushroom Soup (Hubova Polievka)

• 1 large can sauerkraut
• 1/2 lb. dry mushrooms
• 1/2 gallon of water (or more)
• 4 or 5 cloves of garlic
• 3/4 cup of flour
• 1 whole onion (chopped)
• 1 stick butter
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 large bay leaf

Soak dry mushrooms in small bowl for 1/2 hour in warm water, making sure all are covered. Drain and save water. Chop mushrooms on board (not too small in size). Put sauerkraut in large pot with 1/2 gallon water and add all ingredients (EXCEPT flour, butter and onion - these are to make what is called "za praska" to be added later) and boil for one hour (keep pot covered).

Fry stick of butter in pan until just brown. Add 3/4 cup flour and brown again (don't burn and don't leave it whitish). When almost brown, add onion and brown again. When onions are almost brown, add water saved from the soaking of the mushrooms (only 1/2 cup of this water and not the residue). Mix out lumps and add to pot only after pot has boiled for one hour. Cook for 1/2 to 1 hours more while stirring occasionally and make sure all garlic cloves are crushed. 

Curried parsnip soup

Curried parsnip soup
The mix of sweet parsnips and gentle spices makes this soup a great winter warmer.
3 tbsp butter
1 onion, chopped
11oz (300g) parsnips, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1 baking potato, peeled and chopped
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
2 tbsp mild curry powder
1⁄2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
salt and freshly ground black pepper
crème fraîche, for serving
chopped parsley, for serving
Melt the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until softened. Add the parsnips, carrot, and potato. Sprinkle in the flour  and curry powder and stir for 2 minutes. Gradually stir in the stock. Turn up the heat and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low. Cover and simmer gently for 40 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. Turn the heat off, uncover, and allow the soup to cool slightly. Purée the soup in a blender
or food processor. Season with salt and pepper. Pour back into the pot and reheat before serving.
To serve, ladle into bowls. Top each with a swirl of crème fraîche and a sprinkleof chopped parsley.

Watercress and pear soup

Watercress and pear soup
For extra flavor, serve this velvety soup with shredded Parmesan cheese.

2 tbsp butter
1 onion, finely chopped
6oz (175g) watercress
3 ripe pears, peeled, cored, and roughly chopped
1qt (liter) chicken stock
salt and freshly ground black pepper
3⁄4 cup heavy cream
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
olive oil, to drizzle

Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the onion and cover. Cook,
stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes, or until tender. Meanwhile, trim the watercress and pluck off the leaves. Add the watercress stems to the pot with the pears and stock. Bring to a boil over high heat.
Cover and simmer gently for 15 minutes, or until the pears are tender. Season with salt and
pepper. Reserving a few watercress leaves for garnish, purée the soup and watercress leaves in
a blender. Add the cream and lemon juice, and adjust the seasoning.
Serve hot, garnished with watercress leaves.
The soup can cooled, covered, and refrigerated up to one day.

white bean & eggplant soup

white bean & eggplant soup
Don’t be put off by the thought of roasting the eggplant first. I know it
can feel like a hassle, but it really takes no active time at all. It’s actually
a really simple soup and so rich and warming, almost meaty in a way.
For a vegan version replace the butter with olive oil or macadamia oil.
And if it looks a little too brown for you, feel free to garnish with some
chopped parsley or chives. And it’s really optional whether you leave the
soup chunky or puree it with a stick blender or end up somewhere in
between.
serves 3-4
2 medium eggplant (aubergine)
2 knobs butter or olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 cans white beans (400g / 14oz)
2-4 tablespoons lemon juice
Preheat oven to its highest setting.
Cut eggplant in half lengthwise and place on an oven proof
tray cut side down. Bake for 30 - 40 minutes or until eggplant
is very soft.
Meanwhile melt butter in a large saucepan and cook onion,
covered for about 15 minutes or until very soft and golden.
Add beans and the liquid to the onions and bring to a simmer.
Cook for about 10 minutes or until your eggplant is ready.
Srape the flesh from the cooked eggplant and add to the
soup. Simmer for a minute or so then puree, if you like.
Taste and season with salt, pepper and lemon juice.

smoky tomato & lentil soup

smoky tomato & lentil soup


Smoked paprika is one of the most magical ingredients. If you can’t
find it the soup will be OK without, but I highly recommend tracking
some down.
This ia great pantry recipe to have in your repetoire for when you
need a quick impromptu meal.
serves 2
2 cans lentils (400g / 14oz)
1 can tomatoes (400g / 14oz)
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon dried chilli
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1. Place, lentils and their canning liquid, tomatoes, paprika
and chilli in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer.
2. Crush tomatoes to break them up a little with a spoon.
3. Simmer, covered for 2-3 minutes or until the soup is
lovely and hot.
4. Taste and season with soy sauce, a little salt and pepper.
Drizzle with some peppery extra virgin olive oil for some richness.

pea & pasta soup with bacon

pea & pasta soup with bacon
serves 4
This is my take on the classic ham and pea soup.
Frozen peas are a life saver when you’re in the mood for something
green and the larder is empty. Peas are one of those vegetables that start
to loose their natural sweetness and flavour as soon as they are picked
so unless you have access to peas straight from the plant, frozen will
generally taste better.
I’ve used bacon instead of ham and served it in chunks on top but you
could skip the bacon and use vegetable stock if you wanted a vegetarian soup.
4 rashers bacon
4 cups chicken stock
1/2 packet frozen peas (250g or 1/2lb)
200g or 7oz macaroni or other small pasta
1/2 bunch chives, chopped, optional
Cook bacon under a broiler or overhead grill until brown and crispy.
Meanwhile bring the stock to the boil in a large saucepan. Add peas
and pasta and boil for about 8 minutes or until the pasta is cooked.
Stir through chives, if using. Taste and season. Serve soup topped with bacon pieces.

zucchini (courgette) soup

zucchini (courgette) soup
serves 3-4


The fastest way to grate zucchini is using a food processor. If you don’ t have one you could get some exercise and grate with a hand grater. Or just cut the zucchini into small chunks - they’ll take a little longer to cook.
The herbs add a some freshness at the end but the soup will be lovely without it.
2 cloves garlic, finely sliced
4 medium zucchini, grated
2 cups tomato passata
1/2 bunch  basil or flat leaf parsley, leaves picked
parmesan cheese, to serve
Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large saucepan and cook garlic over a high heat for 30 seconds or until just starting to brown. Add zucchini and cook stirring for a couple of minutes. Add passata and
2 cups water and bring to the boil. Simmer for 7-8 minutes or until zucchini is tender.
Taste and season and toss through herbs. Serve with cheese grated on the top.

chicken & couscous soup

chicken & couscous soup
serves 4

Couscous is brilliant in soup as it cooks quickly and adds a lovely hearty texture to make your soup more of a meal-in-a-bowl.
If you have access to kale or other greens they may be substituted for the baby spinach for a more rustic soup.
6 cups chicken stock or broth
2 chicken breasts, finely sliced into ribbons
1/2 cup couscous
2 bags baby spinach, washed
4-5 tablespoons lemon juice
Bring the stock to the boil in a large saucepan.
Add chicken and cook for 2 - 3 minutes or until just cooked through. Scoop our the chicken and divide between 4 bowls. Keep warm.
Meanwhile return the broth to the boil. Add couscous and return to the boil then stir through the spinach leaves until they are just wilted. Add lemon juice, season and taste. Add a little more lemon juice if you think it needs it. Divide couscous and spinach broth between the bowls and serve hot.

PPotato and Parsley Soup with Black Peppered bread

Potato and Parsley Soup 
with Black Peppered bread 


Potato soup, another creamy comforting soup - this one with some parsley for
freshness.
- heat some oil hot in a saucepan
- add a couple of rashers of bacon chopped anyold how and turn the heat down (if you
are vegetarian of course, just miss out the bacon)
- when it is just sizzling add an onion and three small sticks of celery, all chopped
- leave to cook gently until it all smells glorious – a good ten minutes I should think.
You want people to come into the kitchen and ask what you are cooking with a dreamy longing look on their faces.
- Peel and chop three potatoes, add them to the pan and leave for a few more minutes
now, stirring to mix and stop it sticking.
- Add a pint and a half of vegetable stock – I used Rapunzel vegetable boullion mixed
half strength as usual.
- Once the potatoes are soft, say twenty minutes to half an hour, whiz the lot in a
liquidiser
- Bung it back in the pan, check seasoning and add a tablespoon of chopped parsley
as you warm it through.

As say, creamy and comforting this one with a hint of onion, celery and bacon for
depth. It still needed a bit of a kick though, so I made some bread topped with olive oil
and lots of crushed black pepper. The pepper seems to take on a lovely lemony tang
when cooked, with a warmth to match the soup.

Tomato and Black Olive Soup 


Picked a huge bowl full of cherry tomatoes earlier, and there are still lots ripening so I
have no guilt about making half of them into a simple tomato soup.

- Half an onion and a clove of garlic are gently fried in some oil and butter till soft.
- Meanwhile peel and chop a couple of small potatoes for thickening and add them to
the pan.
- Then the tomatoes – about three pounds in this case, along with a basil leaf or two.

Stir and mix everything then add some stock, vegetable or in this case some chicken
stock from the fridge that Nicola had made. I added a pint but the soup was a bit thin
cos of the amount of liquid from the tomatoes and had to be boiled down a bit until it
thickened up, so next time I’ll only add half a pint I think.
- Anyway, simmer until the tomatoes and potatoes are cooked and soft - about twenty
minutes.
- Now the skin and seeds need to be removed which I do by putting a metal sieve over
a big jug, pouring in the soup and pushing it through firmly with a wooden spoon.
- Wash the pan and put the soup back in to warm through, season and voila – tomato
soup.


But all the way through the cooking I kept thinking it was a bit one dimensional, a
thought kept popping into my head - black olives. So today  I finally got a jar.
- Draining a handful of olives I chopped and squashed them into a paste, then stirred a
small dessertspoonful into the rest of the soup and warmed it through.

Delicious and quite pretty – the reddish orange colour speckled through with aubergine
flecks. It will be my lunch tomorrow at work.

Spinach Soup and Tortillas 


Nothing much in the fridge today, just half a bag of baby spinach past its best, so
spinach soup it is.


- The usual recipe - half an onion and a clove of garlic sweated slowly in some oil and
butter.
- One potato chopped and added for thickening, then a pint and a quarter of stock.
Home made chicken stock would be nice here but there is none left in the freezer so
half strength Rapunzel's vegetable bouillon it is.
- Twenty minutes or so later once the potato is cooked add the spinach - a couple of
big handfuls.
- Simmer for a minute or so then blend.
- Back in the washed pan it goes along with black pepper, a little salt and 'cos it
seemed a bit thin - some milk, so cream of spinach soup now.


As beautifully green as a stagnant pond in spring time, maybe a little bit stocky tasting
but served with some salty feta, absolutely delicious.


And tortillas as well (no bread left either!) dead easy to make - just flour salt and water,
kneaded into a soft dough, rested for twenty minutes then rolled out thin and cooked in
a dry frying pan 'till speckled brown. 

S O U P . . . .


Soup is surely the ultimate food. From the

poorest of the poor standing in the street

beside a soup kitchen to the richest of the

rich at a posh dinner party, we can all eat

soup. Be it a hot Mediterranean summers

day or a cold wet Scottish autumn one there

is a soup that is just right. It will match your

mood – from comforting and warm to spicy

and exotic, full of unknown promise like a

first date. Feeling alone and miserable? Just

cuddle up to a bowl of soup by the fire,

watch the telly and stuff the world out there.

Or have friends round for lunch and put a

panfull of soup on the table surrounded by

bread, cheese and beer and let everybody

help themselves. In a hurry? Make it

instantly from a packet all glutinous and full

of strange plasticky vegetables. Or take

your time, like I will today and make a big

pan full of velvety pumpkin soup for the

family tonight. It will bubble away quietly

while I get on with other things and if

anybody is late, no worries, it only gets

better whilst sitting keeping warm.

Taste 

Nowadays we are so used to getting food pre-prepared, ready to eat, that we hardly

consider how it gets there. You order it over the phone or internet, or you open the tin

and warm it through, or you take it out of the freezer and microwave it, and hey presto

or “ding” should I say, there it is on your plate ready to eat. Even recipes are pretty

foolproof, you could probably go from start to finish without tasting and the end result

would be fine.

But that is not what we are after here. No, we are constructing something from scratch,

so taste everything all the way through. Watch how the flavours change, how the stock

overpowers everything at the beginning but then mellows during cooking as the other

flavours develop and come through.

And think about what you’re tasting, is it nice? Is it what you expected? Does it need

something else?

If it does you’ll know, you may not know what, but you will know that the taste is not

quite right. Here is where I experiment. I’ll take a spoonful and add a little bit to that

spoonful, say yoghurt perhaps or lemon juice or some feta cheese. Then I’ll taste that

and if it works – fine, if not I still have my soup. This way you’ll learn what works and

what doesn’t, and gather a whole lot of ideas that work (or don’t) for the future.

The Base 

You could make a soup with just carrots and water, and very nice it would be I am sure

but rather plain and one dimensional. This is where the base of a soup comes in. Along

with the stock, the base adds a depth and background to the flavour of those main

ingredients, subtly complementing and bringing out the best in them.

In the west most recipes use onions or something similar, leeks say or shallots or celery.

Bacon as well, if you eat it would go in as part of the base, to be chopped and cooked

slowly in a little oil or butter until it all becomes fragrant. This will usually take a good

ten minutes or more, the onions should become translucent and start to turn faintly

golden brown. Keep the heat low during this so that it does not burn, because burnt

onions will overpower the whole thing. If it does burn, because you know that the

phone will ring at just the wrong moment, then just throw it out, wash the pan and start

again, it is no big deal.

While the base is cooking I usually peel and chop my main ingredients ready to be

stirred in and allowed to cook for a few minutes before adding the stock. I say stock but

any liquid could be used, from water through to beer, wine, milk or a combination, it

all depends on what you feel like, what you are making.

Once the stock is in, bring it to simmer - a gentle bubble really and leave until it is all

cooked, twenty minutes to half an hour for most vegetables, but bite a bit to see.