The Only Soup Recipe You'll Ever Need!

Well, that title may not appeal to everyone, but for me it is true. This is the ONLY soup recipe I ever use! Using basic quantities, you can make a creamy soup, using whatever vegetables you have to hand. It doesn't matter what you put in, so long as the overall weight to fluid ratio is about right. It doesn't really matter if you use slightly more or less vegetables to fluid, as it just means your overall soup will be thicker or thinner, which is largely down to personal taste anyway. It freezes well, so you can make up a cauldron full and have some on hand for lazy days.

Ingredients

16oz diced vegetables (It doesn't matter how much of each, or what selection use use) I use potato, sweet potato, leek, onion, cauliflower, parsnip and brocolli. Generally speaking, the more parsnip use put in the sweeter it will be; the more potato and cauliflower the creamier it will be. I like to have a good variety if I have it. This is especially useful for using up all those veg that are starting to get a bit rubbery in the bottom of the fridge :-)

2 vegetable stock cubes dissolved in 2 pints of boiling water (I use Tesco Value ones, 10p for 10 cubes!)

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp dried sage

Olive Oil

Make sure you weigh the diced vegetables, not the natural weight and remember that the smaller you dice, the quicker your vegetables will cook.

Put the vegetables into a large saucepan and add enough olive oil to  lightly coat the vegetables (usually a couple of tablespoons). Turn up the heat and sear the vegetables without burning. Once all the vegetables are coated and have had a go at the bottom of the pan, add the boiling stock water. Add the herbs. Give the pan a stir and bring to the boil, then simmer with the lid on until the vegetables are cooked through.

Pour the vegetables and the cooking liquid into a blender and blitz until smooth. Return to the pan and reheat if necessary. This can be cooked in advance and left in the pan for re-heating later.

Serve with bread.

If you make too much then leave it to cool and freeze.

Tin Can Stew

This is a bit of a kitchen cheat recipe, but its a great back-up meal if you haven't fresh food in the house. This is a vegetarian stew made out of my can cupboard... mainly non-perishables and a few herbs. Using whole cans, it make a cauldron full and will last two or three people a couple of days. You can add or take away any of the ingredients so its real easy going! Of course if you have fresh veg you can use those instead, but I will stick to the tin-can recipe as an example.


Ingredients:


2 stock cubes
1 can new potatoes
1 can baked beans
1 can button mushrooms
1 can red kidney beans
1 can peas
1 can carrots
a handful of pearl barley
3 cloves garlic, sliced
a healthy pinch of herbs - I like rosemary, thyme and corriander but it doesn't matter


to these if I have them I may also add:
two small onions, cut in half
a handful of frozen mince
a spoonful of gravy granules if it seems too watery


Because of the amount of the ingredients, you'll need to start out with a large and deep saucepan.


Dissolve the stock cubes in a little under 2 pints of boiling water, then add to the pan. Put this over a hot temperature while you add the ingredients. Add all the cans, pouring away about half of the liquid in the can first. Add the barley, mince and garlic before giving it all a good stir. Turn the heat down to a simmer and leave for about half an hour, or whenever it looks cooked - especially if you decide to use fresh veg.


Right at the end stir in your herbs. If it still looks to liquid then stir in some gravey granules and likewise if it has gone too thick (this will depend on things like the quantity of barley and mince used) then add a little more stock.


This is great served with fresh bread and will sit quite happily on the hob til the next day when it just needs reheating.