Pea and Rocket Soup

This unusual soup is very easy, healthy and low calorie!  It is also very green but it tastes great! 

This is my first cookbook recipe post thus fulfilling one of the reasons I started this blog, as mentioned here.  It is from a book called "Bowl Food" by Murdoch Books. I seem to have a problem following recipes to the letter so as usual have changed a couple of things however with so few ingredients there's not much to change!

Pea and Rocket Soup

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 bag rocket (approximately 100gr)
• 1 bag frozen peas (500gr)
• 3 cups (750ml) chicken stock (or vegetable)*
• Shaved Parmesan Cheese to serve

Method

1. Add oil and onion to a saucepan and cook for a couple of minutes until the onion is soft.
2. Add peas and rocket and cook for a minute or two until the rocket wilts a little bit.
3. Add hot stock and an extra cup of boiling water.  Bring to the boil.
4. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
5. Cool and then blend until smooth.
6. Return to the saucepan and reheat.
7. Serve with shaved parmesan and extra rocket leaves if desired.

* I use Massel brand stock which is all vegetable, has no animal content and is gluten free thus making this dish suitable for vegetarians and those with gluten intolerance. 

Pasta e Fagioli

Pasta e fagioli is a traditional Italian dish literally meaning pasta and beans.  It is a hearty, healthy soup - a meal in a bowl.  A quick Google search reveals many variations of this soup but this recipe originally came from a friend's mother and is delicious.  It is also very flexible - add whatever vegetables you have on hand.  Pumpkin is a nice addition.

Ingredients ..

Sweating down the onion, carrots and celery

Adding the stock and tomato

Ready to eat ..

Pasta e Fagioli

Ingredients

• 2 litres of Beef Stock
• 2 tins of crushed tomato with garlic and onion
• 1 tin red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 sticks of celery, finely diced
• 2 onions, finely diced
• 3 carrots, finely diced
• 2 potatoes, diced
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1-2 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 1 cup small pasta
• Chilli flakes
• Cracked black pepper
• Olive Oil

Method

1. Add oil, celery, onion, carrot, garlic, chilli flakes, black pepper to a large, heavy based saucepan and let them sweat down over a low heat until they are soft.  
2. Add the potato, tins of tomato, red kidney beans, beef stock and pasta.  
3. Bring to the boil, lower heat and simmer for about an hour.
4. About 45 minutes in add the peas.

Notes - Even though I use low salt stock I find the soup salty enough without adding salt.  Of course, this is personal taste and you may find you need to add a pinch of salt.  The amount of chilli flakes and black pepper is likewise dependent on personal taste - I like quite a bit of bite.

To serve - delicious as it is but it is also lovely with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese, some crusty bread and a nice glass of red ;)

Roasted Pumpkin Soup

This delicious soup is adapted from a Donna Hay recipe and it is so easy!  The pumpkin roasts in its skin!!  This has been life altering for me as I hate cutting pumpkin!  The scars on my fingers attest to this!  Once the pumpkin is cooked you blend it with chicken stock.  That’s it - very simple.  I adapted this recipe to make it more low calorie but it is easy to find the original on the internet.  The original adds cream, honey and sour cream.  Delicious but not as diet friendly as this version.  I find a little swirl of skim milk is sufficient to thin the soup out and create a nice 'creamy' consistency.

Before ..

After ..

The finished soup reheating

Roasted Pumpkin Soup

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 2 halves butternut pumpkin
• 1 onion
• olive oil or olive oil spray
• sea salt, ground black pepper
• 3 - 4 cups chicken stock
• Skim milk or cream
• Curry Powder (optional)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 220°C
2. Scoop the seeds out of the pumpkin halves
3. Place the pumpkin and onion on a baking tray
4. Drizzle with oil or spray with olive oil spray (less calories!) and sprinkle with salt and pepper
5. Bake for about an hour or until the pumpkin is soft and starting to brown. Once it has cooled scoop the pumpkin out into a blender
6. Scoop the onion flesh away from its skin and add to the blender
7. Add chicken stock and blend until smooth and the consistency you like - (Sometimes I add some curry powder at this step for extra flavour)
8. Pour the mixture into a saucepan, add skim milk or cream if using and gently heat

** If you use gluten free stock this soup is suitable for people who are gluten intolerant