Soup - homemade ideas

My current favourite is cauliflower with cheddar cheese added at the end. I include an onion and sometimes half a potato.

I just use whatever I have, but always onion and celery, chopped small and fried gently for a few mins, then add water and any root veg - potatoes, carrots, swede, turnip, etc., again chopped small, plus a handful of red lentils/pearl barley/both.

If there’s one lonely, dried up rasher of bacon in the fridge, I’ll snip it up and fry with the onion and celery.

I simmer that lot for 30-45 mins, with a couple of chicken or veg stock cubes - or proper chicken stock if I have any, though that will need salt and pepper added.

Sometimes I add a handful of small pasta for the last 10 mins or so. Finally for the last few mins, any green veg - cabbage, sprouts, cauliflower, broccoli, etc., all chopped small.

If I have any final scraps of roast chicken, they’ll go in for the last few minutes, too.

This is a main meal in our house - dh loves it! - usually served with plenty of good strong grated Cheddar to sprinkle on top.

I made a lovely sweet potato and coconut soup. It might sound odd, but it was really tasty. It was in a Co-Op magazine, so is probably on their website.

So have I, anno .

This thread started in 2013! I think it has been picked up by someone with something to sell. Do I have a nasty, suspicious mind? Yes.

Minestrone is easy and lovely...

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I have taken to sometimes cheating with soup lately. Asda do bags of soup mix (fresh veg but already chopped for you with herbs added). They do leek & potato, carrot & coriander and yesterday I discovered a vegetable one. If I want soup and haven't time to chop etc, these are great, fresh but already chopped for you and at £1 each they are fairly economical, you just add two vegetable stock cubes and a litre of water. Last DH and myself about 4 days.

Potato and watercress is nice.

I make soup often and am definitely going to try making sweet potato, pumpkin (if available still), red kidney bean and cannelloni bean soup. Had this the other day and it's a real Winter Warmer and good for diets because it' s so filling.Usually just use whatever is around plus very useful mixed veg. packs from the supermarket. So useful to make and freeze some, for anyone on their own.,especially.

Mishap I wish you luck ---------- Big Time !!!

I'm making soup for 84 people on Sunday - wish me luck!

phoenix, I am a big fan of M and S lentil and bacon soup, but it costs an arm and a leg so I plan to try making my own using your recipe, (which I'm sure will be much healthier too). Went to Lidl yesterday, got the lardons. Just wondering if it matters what colour lentils I use? Got some greenish ones and some orangey ones lurking in the cupboard. Do you soak them? (Sorry if anybody is shocked by my ignorance of such things, I'm not renowned for my culinary skills... Mr B is the chief soup chef around here, my contribution is just the very, very occasional dollop of minestrone or leek and potato and I thought it was time to try and clamber out of my rut...).

Cut up tomatoes(skins and all)red pepper, onion, garlic and carrot,mix up with olive oil and seasoning and roast for 40mins or so. Add stock and roast a bit longer, then blitz.It seems to work whatever proportions you use and if you put less stock, it doubles as a tomato sauce.Also freezes well which was handy when we had a glut of tomatoes.

Yesterday I made a butternut squash and sweet potato soup. I just threw everything in the pan. One onion, finely chopped, 2 peeled and chopped sweet potatoes and a smallish butternut squash peeled and chopped (chop veggies quite small), 2 cloves garlic, 2 vegetable stock cubes, about a litre of water (a bit less if you want it thicker), salt and pepper, bring to boil and simmer for about 15 minutes until veggies are soft, then blend. I just made it up myself and it was rather nice

I think a broth mix is a great standby and I love a ham shank with a broth mix. Never come across it until I came to Durham. one of my cheats is aunt Bessie's discs of frozen mash. They thicken up a thin soup that's misbehaving and powdered milk lightens a muddy looking soup. I like mushroom soup and some Moroccan soups but they tend to look like liquid mud. Jamie Oliver's 15 minute minestrone is good and I often do a minestrone from the
Lakeland children's cookbook. I've downloaded a delicious recipe for Soupe du Chalet which has gruyere and cream. It costs the earth to eat in Gruyere and it's not cheap to make but it's gorgeous. Does anyone use Umami in soups and if so how? I've been given some and am a bit wary.

I make massive pots of soup and freeze loads of it. I prefer to use a smoked ham knuckle, put in a pot with lentils or Broth mix, Add to that some chunky cut turnip (swede),carrot, parsnip and sometime potato. Bring it to the boil and simmer till veg and meat is cooked. It's how my mum and her mum made soup. It's a meal in a bowl.

I tried the carrot coriander and lentil soup today - not so enjoyable as the leek and potato, and it was rather a muddy colour, but very filling. I'm not mad on the blended lentils. Next time I'll try just carrot and coriander.

Great ideas here, Mishap yours sounds really simple and tasty.

In my latest attempt to use up cupboard items and bits and bobs in the fridge and freezer I've just made pea and mint soup.

A red onion, olive oil, bag of frozen petit pois, stock cube, dried mint, water & seasoning, simmered then blitzed with a spot of milk. Very easy and tasty, topped with a few parmesan shavings.

Onions, garlic, tinned tomatoes, tomato paste, pesto, bit of jalapino for bite, spoonful of bouillon powder. Whizz it all up when cooked - yummy and easy!

Mr P is very fond of what is now known as "random" vegetable soup!

Must admit, I've yet to see the value of those soup makers, an over priced bit of unnecessary kit, imho.

When I had a vegetarian cafe, I used to make a very large pot of vegetable soup every day. The first job every day was to put the onions, carrots, celery and leeks in the pot and sweat in oil until soft. Then add stock and whatever vegetables I'd bought cheap from the greengrocers I passed on the way to the cafe.
After we sold the cafe, I rarely made soup for the next ten years or so.

I make a large batch of vegetable soup every few days and freeze in portions, I use every type of vegetable and add lentils to thicken. You can add potatoes and I do love them but they put my blood sugar level up so I eat them rarely.
I eat soup for breakfast probably 4 to 5 days a week instead of the usual type of breakfast.

My daughter loves my turkey and sweetcorn soup, made with turkey stock onions, potatoes these are creamed together when cooked then add the sweetcorn and pieces of turkey heat thru. If you are not watching your cholesterol you can add milk or cream.

I don't add salt to any of my cooking instead add white and black pepper garlic and chillies.

I was taught by a local chef to start off a soup with just softening onion and garlic in butter or oil. if you have a bit of celery even better. He also used to add bacon lardons , but I don't bother.
Just add whatever you have available. Eg potato and leeks, left over veg. Add stock, Cook and then blend with seasoning.
I'm doing tomato and red lentil soup tomorrow. Just soak the tomatoes in hot water and remove the skins. Soak the lentils for 20 mins before use. I sometimes add leftover red pepper too. yummy!!!

There's a good leek, onion and potato recipe in Delia's recipe book. As long as you have celery, onion and and a carrot you have the basis for virtually any soup.
Jamie Oliver has a lovely tomato soup recipe which even uses the stalks of the tomatoes - gives it a really tangy taste.