On Fridays, having had fish and chips or some such meal at lunchtime, I'm always looking for a way to sneak veg into husband's, son-at-home's and my diet at teatime. Soup and sandwiches form the pathway and this is the soup.
Carrot and Celery Soup
Quantities:
I always reckon about 4 ozs (120g if you must) of veg per person.
Ingredients:
1. The outer stalks of celery
2. Some carrots.
(For the three of us, that's about 2 celery stalks and 3 medium or 2 large-ish carrots.)
Method:
1. Wash and chop the celery.
2. Peel, rinse and chop the carrots any old how.
3. Place in a saucepan with some water and a little salt and pepper.
(Hint, add less water than you think because you can always add more hot water to bring it to the consistency you like at the end of the blending.)
4. Bring to the boil and then simmer until the veg is softish. (Approx. 30 mins, I'd say.)
5. I pour this into a large-ish and fairly tall plastic jug to blend with my hand mixer.
(This stops it splashing everywhere and makes it easy to pour into the bowls.)
You can use any veg, herbs and spices you like. Sadly, onions and some other veg, and spices in general, don't agree with us very well but I usually use a fairly large parsnip with the other ingredients in the winter because I'm all for seasonal food.
PS I have tried 'sweating' the veg, as advised by Delia (Smith), for whose recipes I have a great deal of respect, but I can't taste the difference and this way's a lot easier (and, let it be whispered, doesn't cause as much heartburn - or as it seems to be known now, reflux!).
PPS I use water because I rarely have stock in and don't buy any processed cubes. I can't tell a great deal of difference but that may be my lack of discernment and expertise.
PPPS Husband even likes it, so success all round!
