A Cookbook for Winter (eBook)

Slowly braised onions are truly one of life’s pleasures, especially in this classic, comforting soup, with its topping of melted cheese. For vegetarians, if you are happy eating cheese, simply replace the beef or chicken stock with vegetable stock.

Baked French onion soup with Gruyère topping

75 ml/5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 kg/2 lb. 4 oz. onions, thinly sliced

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 teaspoons freshly chopped thyme

125 ml/½ cup fruity red wine

1 litre/4 cups beef stock or chicken stock (see page 19)

½ French baguette

75 g/⅔ cup grated Gruyère

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Serves 4

Preheat the oven to 180ºC fan/200ºC/400ºF/Gas 6.

Heat the oil in a 4-litre/quart Dutch oven over a medium heat and gently fry the onions, garlic and thyme with a little salt and pepper for 25 minutes until really soft and lightly golden, stirring frequently to prevent the onions from burning.

Add the wine, bring to the boil and boil for 5 minutes or until evaporated, then pour in the stock. Bring back to the boil and season to taste.

Cut the bread into slices 1 cm/½ inch thick and arrange over the top of the soup. Scatter over the Gruyère and Parmesan cheeses and transfer the pan to the preheated oven. Bake uncovered for about 10–15 minutes until the soup is bubbling and the cheese melted and golden. If you wish, you can brown the top of the cheese under a hot broiler/grill.

Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Pangrattato is an Italian fried breadcrumb garnish, often scattered over a dish of cooked pasta. Here, combined with crispy fried bacon, it provides both crunch and flavour to the finished bean soup.

White bean & rosemary soup with bacon pangrattato

60 ml/4 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra to serve

1 large onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, crushed

2 tablespoons freshly chopped rosemary

350 g/12 oz. potatoes, such as Yukon Gold, Russet, Desiree, or King Edward, diced into 1-cm/½-inch cubes

2 x 400-g/14-oz. cans cannellini or haricot beans, drained and rinsed (see introduction)

1 litre/4 cups chicken stock or vegetable stock

2 bay leaves

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

BACON PANGRATTATO

60 ml/4 tablespoons olive oil

125 g/4½ oz. rashers/slices of bacon, rind removed and diced

1 large garlic clove, crushed

100 g/3½ oz. day-old bread (without crusts)

2 tablespoons freshly chopped flat-leaf parsley

Serves 4–6

Heat the oil in a 4-litre/quart Dutch oven over a medium heat and fry the onion, garlic and rosemary for 5 minutes until lightly golden. Add the potatoes and beans, stir well and then add the stock, bay leaves and a little salt and pepper. Bring to the boil, then lower the heat and simmer gently for 15–20 minutes until the potatoes are tender.

Meanwhile, make the pangrattato. Heat the oil in a medium frying pan/skillet over a high heat. Add the bacon and fry for 2–3 minutes until crisp and golden. Remove the pan from the heat and using a slotted spoon, remove the bacon from the oil, and set aside. Add the garlic to the hot oil off the heat and set aside for 10 minutes to flavour it. Remove and discard the garlic.

Cut the bread into pieces and place in a food processor. Using the pulse button, blend the bread to make rough crumbs, as evenly sized as you can. Return the frying pan/skillet to a medium-high heat, add the breadcrumbs and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until they are evenly golden and crisp. Combine with the bacon, parsley and a little salt and pepper and set aside.

When the potatoes are tender, transfer half the soup to a blender or food processor (or use a stick blender) and blend until smooth. Return to the pan and stir. Taste and adjust the seasoning, then heat through.

Divide the soup between warm bowls and top with the pangrattato and a swirl of olive oil.

Pumpkin soup is a classic to serve at Halloween or for Bonfire Night – it freezes well so you can prepare ahead and then just defrost and reheat on the day. For an extra spooky treat, why not serve in roasted pumpkin bowls – once the soup is eaten you can eat the bowl too. Small pumpkins and squashes work perfectly for this (see tip below).

Roasted pumpkin soup

1.3 kg/3 lb. pumpkin or butternut squash, peeled and roughly chopped

grated zest and freshly squeezed juice of 1 orange

1 teaspoon ground ginger

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 litre/4 cups chicken or vegetable stock

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

double/heavy cream, to serve

toasted mixed seeds, to serve

Serves 4

Preheat the oven to 160°C fan/180°C/350°F/Gas 4.

Place the chopped squash or pumpkin in a roasting pan and sprinkle over the orange zest and juice, ginger and olive oil. Roast in the preheated oven for 20–30 minutes until the squash is soft when you cut it with a knife.

Remove from the oven and place in a saucepan with the stock over a medium heat. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for about 15 minutes. Using a stick blender, blender or food processor, blitz until the soup is smooth.

Pour the soup into four bowls and add a swirl of cream to each. Serve topped with toasted seeds.

Tip: If you are making the pumpkin shell bowls, scoop out the insides of four small pumpkins or the round end of four small butternut squashes so that there is a thin layer of flesh remaining on the skin. Use the flesh in the soup recipe above. Drizzle the shells with olive oil and season with salt and pepper and roast in the oven for 25–30 minutes until the flesh is soft but the pumpkin or squash bowl still holds its shape. Serve the soup in the roasted bowls.

Cauliflower may seem a humble vegetable but in this recipe, it is transformed into a deliciously creamy soup. If you don’t have cauliflower, you can substitute broccoli, which works equally well. Also try Cheddar instead of the blue cheese if preferred.

Creamy cauliflower & blue cheese soup

15 g/1 tablespoon butter

1 onion, finely chopped

1 whole cauliflower about 850 g/1 lb. 14 oz., leaves and stalk removed, chopped into pieces

1 litre/4 cups vegetable stock

125 ml/½ cup milk

75 g/2¾ oz. soft blue cheese, crumbled, plus extra to serve (optional)

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Serves 4

In a saucepan, melt the butter and fry the onion until soft and translucent. Add the cauliflower to the saucepan together with the stock and simmer until the cauliflower is very soft.

Add the milk to the saucepan and season well with salt and pepper. Add the blue cheese and stir over the heat until it has melted.

Using a stick blender, blender or food processor, blend until smooth and creamy. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Pour into four bowls and top each with a sprinkling of black pepper and a little extra crumbled blue cheese, if liked.

When cauliflower is roasted it takes on a whole new dimension with a caramelized taste. Almonds add a nutty texture and the puréed cauliflower gives it a creamy feel even though there is no cream or milk added. This recipe is served with cauliflower pickles, which have a sharpness to cut through the creamy texture of the soup. The pickles should be prepared the day before so that they have time to absorb the wonderful vibrant yellow of the saffron.

Roasted cauliflower soup with toasted almonds & pickled florets

1 head of cauliflower, about 1 kg/2 lb. 4 oz.

olive oil, to drizzle

1 teaspoon sweet paprika

100 g/¾ cup blanched whole almonds (such as marcona)

1 litre/4 cups vegetable or chicken stock

4–6 tablespoons crème fraîche (optional)

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

PICKLED FLORETS

cauliflower leaves and 1 floret (from the main cauliflower)

a pinch of saffron

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

1 tablespoon caster/granulated sugar

Serves 4–6

Begin by making the pickled florets as these are best made the day before. Remove all the leaves from the cauliflower and remove one large floret from the base. Keep the rest of the cauliflower for making the soup. Slice the floret very finely and place in a bowl. Put the saffron into another small bowl, pour a little boiling water over and leave for 5 minutes to steep, then pour into the bowl with the cauliflower slices. Mix the sugar and vinegar together until the sugar has dissolved, and then add to the cauliflower and saffron water. Cover and place in the fridge to soak overnight.

The next day, preheat the oven to 180°C fan/200°C/400°F/Gas 6.

Using a sharp knife, remove the stalk of the cauliflower, but cut carefully to ensure that the head of the cauliflower stays in one piece. Place in the roasting pan, drizzle with a good glug of olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper and the paprika. Seal the pan with a layer of aluminium foil. Roast in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, then remove the foil and roast for a further 30–45 minutes until the cauliflower is soft.

About 5 minutes before the end of cooking, add the almonds to the roasting pan and roast for 5 minutes, which should colour the nuts a golden brown. Take care that they do not burn. Remove a handful of the nuts for the garnish and roughly chop...