Tag: Soup

Tomato & Pepper Soup

  • The idea for this soup came about from a salad with vinaigrette that was left over.
  • The vinegar gives the soup a tangy taste and the chilli flakes a little ‘heat’ 

INGREDIENTS

  • 500g tomatoes
  • 3-4 Peppers – red, orange or yellow – not green
  • 1 -2 tablespoons wine or cider vinegar
  • 1 litre of vegetable stock 
  • ½ – 1 teaspoon chilli flakes
  • 1 tablespoon of sunflower oil
  • Salt and pepper to taste

METHOD

  • Skin the tomatoes in boiling water.
  • Chop the tomatoes into quarters and fry gently in the sunflower oil.
  • Cut the peppers into medium sized chunks and add to the tomatoes and stir.
  • Add the vegetable stock and the vinegar.
  • Add the chilli flakes and simmer gently until the peppers are soft.
  • Take the pan off  the heat  and purée the contents with a stick blender.
  • Season to taste.
  • Reheat before serving if necessary.

Meakin – Spanish Garden Soup Dish

Broccoli Soup – 2

  • Although broccoli, one of the many cultivars of wild cabbage was introduced into Poland in the 16th century, its popularity seems to have waned until fairly recently.
  • My old cookery book first published in the mid 1950s makes no mention of  this vegetable – brokula -in Polish.
  • When it was introduced into England it was called ‘Italian Asparagus’.
  • I have based this recipe on my recipe for cauliflower soup and puréed the ingredients, which is more in an English style.

Ingredients

  • Around 500g of broccoli
  • 1 litre of chicken stock (can be from a cube or concentrate)
  • 500ml of milk plus a tablespoon or two.
  • 1 tablespoon of potato or cornflour
  • *
  • 125 ml of soured cream to serve
  • Salt & Pepper to taste

Method

  • Cut the broccoli into small pieces of stem and florets.
  • Simmer the stem pieces in the stock till nearly tender.
  • Add the florets and simmer till both are tender.
  • Add the 500ml of milk and bring to the boil.
  • Use a stick blender or similar to liquidise the ingredients.
  • Season to taste.
  • Mix the potato flour with the extra milk.
  • Mix the flour with the rest of the soup.
  • Heat gently, stirring whilst it thickens.
  • Stir in the soured cream before serving.
Royal Doulton – Carnation Soup Plate

Dark Mushroom Soup

  • I have recently returned from a trip to the Netherlands to visit my old school friend.
  • We were invited out to dinner and had a lovely meal, which gave me several ideas for new recipes.
  • Our host had cooked venison and had used venison stock to make a soup.
  • Now I am unlikely to get any venison in the near future so I decided to used beef stock (from a cube) to make this soup.
  • Whilst eating this soup I thought it had ingredients, which could easily be a soup that would be very popular in Poland.
  • These were: fresh mushrooms, sauerkraut and smoked bacon. 
  • I did not have any flat leaved parsley on the day I made this or I would have used it to garnish the soup.

Ingredients

  • 200g mushrooms – white or brown caps.
  • 1 large onion 
  • 3-4 rashers of smoked bacon
  • 100 – 150g sauerkraut 
  • 1½ litres of beef stock (can be from cubes or concentrate)
  • Sauerkraut liquor – to taste 
  • Salt & pepper to taste.
  • *
  • Flat leaved parsley to serve

    Method

  • Chop the onion into small chunks.
  • Slice the mushroom caps into thin slices.
  • Add the onion and mushrooms to the stock.
  • Bring to the boil and then let it simmer with a lid on the pan.
  • Simmer for around 30 minutes.
  • Cut the bacon into thin long pieces.
  • Drain sauerkraut and chop it into smaller strands.
  • Add the bacon and sauerkraut and let these simmer for another 30 minutes.
  • *
  • Adjust the sourness with sauerkraut liquor to taste.
  • Season to taste.
  • *
  • Serve with flat leaved parsley if available.
Soup Plate by Royal Doulton – Carnation

Carrot & Leek Soup

  • This recipe makes two different types of soup – two ways –  chunky and creamed.
  • A light vegetable stock is the basis of this soup.

Ingredients

  • 4 large carrots
  • 2-3 leeks
  • 2 medium potatoes
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons of butter
  • 1½ litres of vegetable stock
  • Salt & Pepper to taste
  • *
  • Several tablespoonfuls of soured cream for the creamed soup

Method

  • Chop the leeks into small slices.
  • Fry them lightly in the butter.
  • Peel and chop the carrots.
  • Peel and chop the potatoes into small chunks.
  • Add then all to the stock.
  • Bring to the boil.
  • Simmer till the vegetable are soft.
  • *
  • Check the seasoning and serve.

Creamy version

  • Purée the vegetables – a stick blender is good for this.
  • Add the soured cream and serve.
  • Served in:
  • Royal Stafford – Blossom Time
  • Midwinter – Spanish Garden

White Onion Soup

This soup is based on the recipe for white onion sauce .

Ingredients

  • 2 medium onions
  • 30g butter
  • 1  tablespoons of plain flour
  • 250 & 250ml vegetable stock
  • 125ml full fat Greek yoghurt or soured cream
  • Salt & pepper

Method

  • Chop the onion into pieces.
  • Cover with 250ml of vegetable stock.
  • Bring to the boil and then simmer till soft.
  • Add the butter.
  • Use a blender to purée the onions.
  • Mix the rest of the 125ml of stock with the flour.
  • Add the stock mixture to the onions and bring to the boil.
  • Simmer and stir till the mixture thickens.
  • Add the yoghurt or soured cream.
  • Season to taste. 
Meakin – Midwinter China – Spanish Garden

Bean & Pepper Soup

This soup was inspired by the vegetables in my Tuna & New World Salad 

Ingredients

  • 1 tin of Beans – Cannellini, Pinto or Mixed – drained
  • 4 tomatoes – skinned & chopped
  • 1 small tin of sweetcorn – drained (or cooked frozen sweetcorn)
  • Yellow or Orange Pepper – chopped
  • 2 red chillies – chopped fine
  • 1 bunch of spring onions – white and green parts chopped
  • 1 litre of vegetable stock
  • 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • Salt & pepper to taste

Method

  • Fry the onions, tomatoes and peppers in the olive oil.
  • Add the sweetcorn and chillies.
  • Add the vegetable stock.
  • Bring to the boil and then simmer for around 20 minutes.
  • Add the beans and simmer for another 15 – 20 minutes.
  • Add the lemon juice.
  • Season to taste.
Meakin – Midwinter China – Spanish Garden

Lemony Vegetable Soup

  • This soup was inspired when making lemony chicken sauce.
  • The addition of lemon juice just before serving gives this soup a lovely tang.
  • It gives it the sour taste that is loved by Poles.
  • Use green vegetables mostly such as celery, lettuce, white & green part of leeks, chives and kale.
  • A little chopped carrot and  sweetcorn can be added.

Ingredients

  • Sliced or finely chopped green vegetables such as: 
  • celery
  • chives
  • kale
  • leeks – white and green
  • onions (if not using leeks)
  • sorrel
  • *
  • 1 carrot – chopped small
  • *
  • 2 tablespoons of butter
  • 1 – 1½ litres of chicken or vegetable stock
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • Salt & pepper to taste. 

Method

  • Melt the butter in a pan and lightly fry the leeks or onions.
  • Stir in the rest of the vegetables.
  • Cook for a few minutes.
  • Add the stock.
  • Simmer for 20 – 30 minutes till all vegetables are soft.
  • Season to taste.
  • Stir in the juice of the lemon.
Meakin – Midwinter – Spanish Garden

Plum Soup

  • Last year in the summer I wrote about 3 fruit soups – rhubarb, sour cherry and strawberry.
  • Later in the autumn I made an apple soup.
  • This year I have made plum soup.
  • Just like other soups this is served as a first course.
  • This soup is best served hot.

Ingredients

  • 500g plums.
  • 50-75g granulated sugar
  • 1½ tablespoons of potato flour or cornflour
  • Small cinnamon stick
  • 1.5 litres of water
  • 125ml of soured cream
  • *
  • White bread croutons or cold cooked pasta to serve

Method

  • Put the water and cinnamon  into a large saucepan.
  • Add the plums to the pan.
  • Bring to the boil then simmer with a lid on the pan till the plums are falling apart.
  • Strain the liquid into a large bowl.
  • Return the strained liquid to the pan.
  • Add the sugar to the liquid (check for sweetness – should be slightly tart).
  • Bring to the boil.
  • Leave to cool a little.
  • Mix the potato flour with a little water.
  • Add this to the soup.
  • Bring to the boil, stirring gently.
  • Simmer and stir until the soup thickens.
  • Remove from the heat and stir in the soured cream.
  • Serve hot.
  • Can serve with white bread croutons or cold cooked pasta.
Royal Stafford – Blossom Time from the 1950s

Broccoli Soup

  • This is a delicate creamy soup.
  • The Polish for broccoli is brokuły and comes from the Italian broccoli meaning a cabbage sprout.

Ingredients

  • Large head of broccoli
  • 1 large potato
  • 1 litre of vegetable or chicken stock
  • 125ml of soured cream
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Method

  • Peel and chop the potato into small chunks.
  • Chop the broccoli stalks into small pieces.
  • Add the potatoes and broccoli stalks  to the stock.
  • Bring to the boil and simmer until the vegetables are nearly soft.
  • Add the rest of the broccoli and bring back to the boil.
  • Simmer till soft.
  • Remove from the heat.
  • Purée the soup – a stick blender is good for this.
  • Stir in the soured cream.
  • Season to taste.
  • Bring back to the boil and then serve.
  • Royal Doulton Carnation Dish – 1982-1998

Courgette Soups

  • I was interested in why British English and American English have different names for a mini marrow.
  • In Italian zucca is the name given to a squash and zucchini is the diminutive.
  • In French courge is the name given to a squash and courgette is the diminutive.
  • So the two words mean the same thing and one can speculate why one is used in Britain and the other in America.
  • In Poland the word used is cukini – so comes from Italian – as do many vegetable names in Polish.
  • Here are two simple but delicious soups, they start off the same and it is in the finishing that they are different.
  • I think version 1 is more the style of soup served in Poland and version 2 more in England.

Ingredients – Version 1

  • 2-3 courgettes
  • 1 onion
  • 1 litre vegetable stock
  • 2-3 tablespoons of butter
  • 2 tablespoons of soured cream
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Chopped chives or flat-leaved parsley to serve

Method – Version 1

  • Chop the onion into small pieces.
  • Melt the butter and gently fry the onion in it till golden.
  • Chop the courgette into small pieces and add to the onion.
  • Add the vegetable stock and bring to the boil.
  • Simmer gently until the courgettes are soft.
  • Stir in the soured cream.
  • Season to taste.
  • Add chopped herbs when serving.

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Meakin Midwinter – Spanish Garden – Soup Dish from the 1960s.

Ingredients – Version 2 – Cream of Courgette 

  • 2-3 courgettes
  • 1 onion
  • 1 litre vegetable stock
  • 2-3 tablespoons of butter
  • 125ml of soured cream
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Chopped chives or flat-leaved parsley to serve

Method – Version 2

  • Chop the onion into small pieces.
  • Melt the butter and gently fry the onion in it till golden.
  • Chop the courgette into small pieces and add to the onion.
  • Add the vegetable stock and bring to the boil.
  • Simmer gently until the courgettes are soft.
  • Remove the pan from the heat.
  • Purée the soup – a stick blender is good for this.
  • Bring back to the boil.
  • Stir in the soured cream.
  • Season to taste.
  • Add chopped herbs when serving.
Royal Doulton – Carnation 1982 – 1998