large onion, chopped
1 large garlic clove, crushed
125g (4oz) green lentils
225g (8oz) spinach leaves, washed
1 litre (1¾ pints) unsalted vegetable stock or water
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2–3 tsp lemon juice
croûtons or thick yoghurt, to serve (optional)
Heat the oil in a large saucepan, add the onion and fry for 10 minutes, with a lid on the pan, until the onion is almost tender and flecked with brown.
Stir in the garlic, lentils and spinach, then pour in the stock or water and bring to the boil. Simmer gently, with a lid on the pan, for about 45 minutes, until the lentils are soft.
Blend the soup, then reheat, season it with salt, freshly ground black pepper and lemon juice.
Serve just as it is, in deep, warm bowls, or top with a spoonful of crisp golden croûtons or thick Greek yoghurt.
Green split pea soup v
These green split peas, which you can get at health-food shops, make a pleasant change from the more usual yellow ones, or indeed from the colour of most dried beans, and they taste good too. As it’s a winter soup, I use dried herbs here; both marjoram and savory are useful to have in the store cupboard for adding depth of flavour, particularly to pulses.
SERVES 4
175g (6oz) green split peas
1.2 litres (2 pints) water
1 onion, chopped
2 potatoes, peeled and sliced
2 sticks of celery, chopped
2 small leeks, sliced
½ tsp dried savory or marjoram
salt and freshly ground black pepper
garlic butter, to serve (optional)
Put the split peas into a large saucepan with the water, all the vegetables and the savory or marjoram and bring to the boil.
Simmer gently until the split peas are tender – about 50 minutes. This soup can be served as it is, with chunky pieces of vegetables in it, or blended until completely smooth, or part-blended, the choice is yours. If necessary, add a little more water to bring it to the consistency you like.
Season with salt and pepper, reheat and serve in warmed bowls, topped with a piece of garlic butter (a little softened butter mashed with a crushed garlic clove) for extra flavour. Or you could go the whole hog and serve it with crisp, buttery garlic bread.
Chilled green split pea soup with mint
Here’s another way to use dried green split peas, and it couldn’t be more different from the previous one. I love this soup because it shows pulses in a different light altogether – all spruced up and elegant.
SERVES 4
2 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 stick of celery, chopped
8 sprigs of fresh mint
125g (4oz) green split peas
1 litre (1¾ pints) unsalted stock
a pinch of ground cloves
1 bay leaf
salt and freshly ground black pepper
single cream or crème fraîche, or mint sprigs, to garnish
Heat the oil in a large saucepan, add the onion and celery and fry gently, without browning, for about 10 minutes.
Meanwhile remove the leaves from the stems of the mint and set aside. Add the stalks to the saucepan, together with the split peas, stock, ground cloves and bay leaf.
Bring to the boil, half covered with a lid, and simmer for about 40 minutes or until the split peas are tender.
Remove the bay leaf and mint stalks, add the mint leaves and blend until smooth and creamy, then season with salt and pepper.
Cool then chill the soup in the fridge. Check the seasoning again before serving, then ladle into individual bowls and top with a spoonful of crème fraîche or cream, or a fresh mint sprig, or both.
Yellow split pea soup v
Normally I don’t add any thickening to a lentil or split pea soup; they have enough body without. However, this soup is an exception. The split peas are cooked, puréed, then stirred into a roux of butter and flour, just like making a sauce. The result is a particularly smooth and creamy texture and buttery flavour.
SERVES 4-6
225g (8oz) yellow split peas
1.7 litres (3 pints) water or unsalted vegetable stock
25g (1oz) butter or pure vegetable margarine
1 large onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
25g (1oz) flour (I use fine wholemeal)
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Put the split peas into a large saucepan with the liquid, bring to the boil and simmer gently for 40–50 minutes or until tender. You need a large pan for this because of the bubbling water. If this is a problem, try adding a little oil to the cooking water, or cook the peas using only 1.2 litres (2 pints) of water and add the rest when you blend the soup.
Blend the split peas until smooth and transfer to a bowl.
Melt the butter in the rinsed-out saucepan and fry the onion until golden. Stir in the garlic and flour, cook for a minute or two, then gradually pour in the split pea purée, stirring until you have a smooth mixture.
Let the soup simmer for 5–10 minutes to cook the flour, then season and serve.
Sweetcorn soup
A pretty, pale golden soup with a hint of sweetness. You can blend it until it’s smooth, and then strain it too if you want it really delicate and silky; or half-blend
