Delicious Soups E-Book

Belinda Williams

• Herausgeber: Ryland Peters & Small
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2020

Beschreibung

Comforting, nourishing and bursting with flavour, soup is one of the most versatile ways to eat. From the simplest of vegetable broths prepared with vegetables and herbs straight from the garden to the most luxurious of consommés, soup can be absolutely anything you wish it to be. Taking the best ingredients, marrying them in creative ways, and adding inspired seasonings is the key to creating the most delicious soups and in this collection of more than 60 recipes you will find plenty of inspiration. There are Hearty & Wholesome soups, including plenty of rustic and satisfying vegetarian options such as a Chunky Provencal Vegetable Soup with Smoked Paprika. For a light and silky bowl of goodness try one of the Smooth & Creamy recipes, such as Parsnip and Honey Soup. If the occasion calls for a more sophisticated creation, try one of the recipes from A Little Special. Finally, the more adventurous souls can explore the world of International Flavours with soups inspired by the Far East, Europe, and beyond.

Leseprobe

delicious SOUPS

delicious SOUPS

fresh & hearty soups for every occasion

BELINDA WILLIAMS

photography by Steve Painter

Design, photography and prop styling

Steve Painter

Editor Rebecca Woods

Production Gary Hayes

Art Director Leslie Harrington

Editorial Director Julia Charles

Food stylist Lucy McKelvie

Food stylist’s assistant Ellie Jarvis

Indexer Hilary Bird

First published in 2013.

This edition published in 2020 by

Ryland Peters & Small

20–21 Jockey’s Fields

London WC1R 4BW

and

341 E 116th Street

New York, 10029

www.rylandpeters.com

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Text © Belinda Williams 2013, 2020

Design and photographs © Ryland Peters & Small 2013, 2020

Printed in China

The author’s moral rights have been asserted. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher.

eISBN: 978-1-78879-260-8

ISBN: 978-1-78879-196-0

A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library.

US Library of Congress CIP data has been applied for.

Notes

• Both British (Metric) and American (Imperial plus US cups) measurements are included in these recipes for your convenience, however it is important to work with one set of measurements only and not alternate between the two within a recipe.

• All spoon measurements are level unless otherwise specified.

• All vegetables are medium-sized unless otherwise specified.

• All eggs are medium (UK) or large (US), unless otherwise specified. Uncooked or partially cooked eggs should not be served to the very old, frail, young children, pregnant women or those with compromised immune systems.

• When a recipe calls for the grated zest of citrus fruit, buy unwaxed fruit and wash well before using. If you can only find treated fruit, scrub well in warm soapy water before using.

• Ovens should be preheated to the specified temperatures. We recommend using an oven thermometer. If using a fan-assisted oven, adjust temperatures according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

contents

introduction

stocks

hearty & wholesome

smooth & creamy

a little special

international flavours

index

acknowledgements

introduction

Love, health and humour: the three most important things in life and the three most defining elements in this book. Everyone knows that home-cooked food is good for you – good for the soul, good for the heart and good, in most cases, for the waistline! Soup is the food of endless versatility, comfort and joy.

It is because of the simplicity of soup, and its relevance to just about any culture or occasion, that we decided to start our company producing homemade soup on a commercial scale – and thus Yorkshire Provender was born. I am proud of my heritage and wanted to bring the farmers and food producers to the fore, and to create a tangible link between producer and consumer, so often void on our supermarket shelves. A hand-crafted product produced by real people with real stories who care passionately about what they do. We remain one of the few soup producers who use fresh vegetables from sources we know. Our relationships with our growers and farming roots are still at the core of our ethos and guide us in all we do.

Happily, just about anyone can make soup, regardless of culinary ability. Simply start with quality ingredients, treat them well and the result will be delicious! I am very visually led and often seek inspiration from a single vegetable: a perfect cabbage, tender baby spinach or a gnarly celeriac/celery root – they all lure me in and beg me to turn them into something wonderful.

I hope that I can encourage you, through the recipes in this book, to explore the endless possibilities of this wonderful medium. I have included all manner of options, from rustic fish stews to elegant veloutés with scallops, so there is truly something for every occasion. Whether it be a picnic on the beach (try the Fresh Spinach Soup with Minted Pea and Coriander on page 56), a cosy lunch around the kitchen table (try Scottish Root Vegetable Soup with Pearl Barley and Thyme – see page 126), or a formal dinner party starter and show stealer (try shooters of Beetroot and Parsnip Soup with Horseradish on page 64, with a smoked trout and wasabi salad), a soup can be applied to all occasions, and it will do its job brilliantly. Like the perfect cashmere sweater, soup can be dressed up or dressed down and, regardless of the company, is always effortlessly appropriate.

I would also hope that you make each soup your own. If you are missing an ingredient or want to substitute one vegetable for another, then do – it will be different, but it will not be a failure! I am the daughter of wartime babies and my parents were, and still are, from a generation who believed in throwing nothing away! I have that hangover from my childhood, where leftovers were half the fun of meal times. My mother would make bubble and squeak with leftover cabbage and mash, and meatballs with leftover Sunday joint passed through a huge hand-turned mincer/grinder clamped to the kitchen table. I still get an excited, satisfying pleasure in creating meals out of whatever I find left in the fridge, and much like my mother’s, mine is always crammed full. Soups cry out for leftovers to be used, and most soups can be adapted to suit what you have left.

It is my memories of great experiences, moments, people and places that have inspired the recipes in this book. I hope you enjoy making these soups, and have the confidence to create some new ones of your own.

stocks

In this book I have referred to ‘stock’. I would never insist you make your own as there are some good powdered or compound stocks available (although try and use one with as few artificial additives as possible or your delicious soup could end up tasting like a poor packeted relation!). But I would actively encourage you to take the time to make your own. You can make these when you have a little time available or appropriate ingredients to hand and pop them in the freezer.

vegetable stock

2 onions, halved

2 leek, thickly sliced

1 fennel bulb, halved

4 celery sticks, thickly sliced

4 carrots, peeled and thickly sliced

1–2 bay leaves

a few sprigs of fresh thyme

a small bunch of fresh parsley

10 white peppercorns

sea salt

makes about 1.5 litres/6 cups

Put all ingredients in a large saucepan and top up with 2.5 litres/quarts water. Cover the pan with a lid, bring the liquid to a simmer. Let it simmer for 1½ hours, removing the lid for the last 30 minutes so it can reduce a little. Pass the stock through a sieve/strainer and discard the solids. Adjust the seasoning with salt and use as per the recipe.

Tip: If you prefer a slightly richer flavour, brown the vegetables in a tablespoon butter before adding the liquid to the pan.

fish stock

50 g/3½ tablespoons butter

2 garlic cloves

12 shallots, peeled

1 leek, thickly sliced

2 kg/4½ lbs. white fish carcass/bones (not oily fish or salmon), heads and all but no guts

4 celery sticks, thickly sliced

½ fennel bulb, halved

2 carrots, peeled and thickly sliced

a large bunch of fresh tarragon

a large bunch of fresh parsley

10 peppercorns

sea salt

makes about 1.5 litres/6 cups

Melt the butter in a large saucepan and add the garlic, shallots and leek. Cook for a few minutes until softened, then add fish to the pan. Top up with 2 litres/quarts water. Add the celery, fennel, carrots, herbs and peppercorns, cover with the lid and simmer very gently for about an hour, removing the lid for the last 20 minutes so that it can reduce a little. Pass the stock through a sieve/strainer and discard the solids. Adjust the seasoning with salt and use as per the recipe.

beef stock

3 kg/6½ lbs. beef bones

2 carrots, peeled and thickly sliced

1 onion, halved

3 celery sticks, thickly sliced

2 leeks, thickly sliced

1 bay leaf

a large bunch of fresh parsley

a few sprigs of fresh thyme

10 black peppercorns

sea salt

makes about 1 litres/4 cups

Preheat the oven to 200ºC (400ºF) Gas 6.

Put the beef bones in a roasting pan and roast them in the preheated oven for about 30 minutes to give colour and depth of flavour. Transfer the bones to a stock pan. Deglaze the roasting pan by pouring a little hot water into the pan to pick up any juices that are stuck to the pan (so no flavour is left behind!), then pour into the stock pan with the bones. Add all vegetables, herbs and seasonings to the pan and top with 4 litres/quarts water. Cover the pan with a lid and bring to a simmer. Let simmer very slowly for hours and hours – the more the better and no less than 5 hours! Pass the stock through a sieve/strainer and discard the solids. Transfer the stock to a clean pan, return to the heat and cook, uncovered, until reduced to 1 litre/4 cups – this will intensify the stock’s flavour. Adjust the seasoning with salt, and use as per the recipe.

Tip: Ask the butcher for marrow bones, as these will give the best jellied result. You know you have a good stock if it sets hard when cooled!

chicken stock

25 g/2 tablespoons butter or vegetable or olive oil

4 kg/8 ¾ lbs. chicken wings or a chicken carcass

2 onions, halved

1 leek, thickly sliced

2 garlic cloves

2 celery sticks, thickly sliced

200 g/7 oz. button mushrooms, halved

2 carrots, peeled and thickly sliced

a mix of fresh herbs, such as bay leaves, tarragon, parsley, chervil, thyme (for a very plain stock, use parsley only)

20 black peppercorns

sea salt

makes about 1.5 litres/6 cups

Heat the butter or oil in a large saucepan and add the chicken. Cook for a few minutes in the butter, without colouring, then add the onion, leek and garlic and cook until softened. Add all other vegetables to the pan and pour over 3 litres/quarts water. Add the fresh herbs and the peppercorns, cover the pan and bring to a simmer. Let the stock simmer for 1½ hours, removing the lid for the last 30 minutes so that it can reduce a little. Pass the stock through a fine-mesh sieve/strainer and discard the solids. Skim the stock, if necessary. Adjust the seasoning with salt, and use as per the recipe.

hearty & wholesome

chunky provençal vegetable soup with smoked paprika

This is such a simple and quick soup, and you can use up little left-over bits of vegetable, as only small amounts of each are needed. The quantities and ingredients below are a rough guide because really you can use whatever you happen to have in your fridge. The smoked paprika and balsamic bring it together to give a great balance of interest on the palate.

50 ml/3½ tablespoons olive oil

1 red onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, crushed

½ courgette/zucchini, diced

1 carrot, peeled and diced

2 celery sticks, sliced

1 small leek, white only, sliced

800 ml/3⅓ cups vegetable stock

a 400-g/14-oz. can chopped tomatoes

50 g/3½ tablespoons tomato purée/paste

a good pinch of smoked paprika

200 g/7 oz. mixed canned butter/lima beans and kidney beans, drained

a small handful of green beans, sliced into short lengths

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

a small bunch of fresh basil, roughly chopped

a small bunch of fresh parsley, roughly chopped

sea salt and ground black pepper

serves 6–8

Put the olive oil, onion, garlic, courgette/zucchini, carrot, celery and leek in a large saucepan and toss over medium heat for about 3–4 minutes, until they have taken up the oil.

Pour in the stock and chopped tomaotes, then add the green beans and tomato purée/paste and stir everything together. Simmer for about 15–20 minutes, until the vegetables are tender.

Add the smoked paprika, mixed beans and balsamic vinegar to the pan, cooking for a minute to heat the beans through. Season to taste with salt and black pepper and stir everything together. Finally, stir in the freshly chopped basil and parsley, reserving a little to garnish.

Ladle the soup into chunky rustic bowls and serve scattered with the reserved fresh herbs.

green summer soup

This soup is inspired by sitting in the garden of my dreams and creating a soup with a little bit of most things I find there! The base needs soft vegetables that are happy to be puréed, but any green vegetable can be added, as long as they are not too tough. Throw them in right at the end so that they are simply blanched. The cream is optional – you may prefer this with none, but frankly, I am a bit of a glutton and love my dairy. Alternatively, use crème fraîche, if you prefer. As you will…

75 g/5 tablespoons butter

1 onion, diced

1 potato, peeled and diced

4 celery sticks, sliced

1 leek, white only, sliced

1.5 litres/6 cups vegetable or chicken stock

2 courgettes/zucchini, diced

200 g/1½ cups skinned, fresh baby broad/fava beans

250 g/1¾ cups fresh baby peas

leaves from 2 sprigs of fresh tarragon, chopped

a bunch of fresh chervil, chopped

a large bunch of baby spinach

a bunch of rocket/arugula

200 ml/¾ cup cream (optional)

sea salt and ground black pepper

serves 6

Melt the butter in a large saucepan and add the onion, potato, celery and leek. Cook for a few minutes, until beginning to soften, then pour over the stock. Bring the liquid to a simmer and cook for about 15–20 minutes, until the vegetables are tender. Add the courgette/zucchini, beans, peas and herbs to the soup, bring it back to a simmer and cook for 2–3 minutes, then add the spinach and rocket/arugula and draw off heat. Blend the soup with a stick blender until smooth, then season with salt and pepper. Stir in the cream, if using, ladle the soup into bowls and serve.