Last of the Summer Vegetables,
English Allotment Soup
(French Potager Soup)
for
Slow Sunday
Our friend Jeff popped over the other day and brought us some more of his allotment (potager) home-grown treasures…….beetroot, aubergines, carrots, onions, courgettes, tomatoes and peppers. All beautifully wrapped in newspaper with old fashioned string……a veritable gift for the kitchen soup pot, as I was hankering after soup once more; the weather is cold now and it is nearly time to light the wood burning stoves and fires ~ soup warms the soul as well as my poor chapped hands after a day in the garden.
I know what you must be thinking, I only make red or orange soups ~ well you are wrong! It’s just that the ingredients I have at the moment are mainly tomatoes and carrots, and they are red and orange curiously enough! I am a dab hand at green soups and my brown soups are divine; as for my multi~coloured soups, they are to die for…….however, we are in WARM red and orange soup season ~ so forgive me! BUT, don’t run away, this is a WONDERFUL soup, not only does it have tomatoes and carrots in it, but there are peppers, onions and courgettes too…..it’s an English allotment in a bowl ~ or a French potager, depending on where your veggies grow.
This is a semi smooth soup ~ I blended half the soup and then kept some of the vegetables whole for texture……and I spiced it up a wee bit by adding some Smoked Paprika (Pimenton) for an Autumnal kick in the soup bowl! This would be perfect for lunch or supper, with the ubiquitous crusty bread and maybe a wedge of Vintage Farmhouse Cheddar to complete the soupy scene. By all means blend all of the soup if you lust after a silky (thanks Nigel Slater ~ my new word of the week after viewing Simple Suppers) smooth soup with velvet overtones……I leave that choice in your capable hands.
The list of ingredients in my recipe is not definitive by any means, use whatever you have in your allotment or whatever you receive in a large newspaper wrapped parcel….it’s just that this combination worked so well and there is one thing to be said for red and orange soups, they are jolly, happy and gay to look at ~ they cheer you up before that spoon even reaches your soup parched lips! I shall be working with figs, beetroot and chocolate next week…..yes, I am as random as ever!
English Allotment Soup
(French Potager Soup)Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
6 large ripe tomatoes, skinned and diced
2 small courgettes, diced small
2 onions, peeled and diced
2 peppers, green, yellow or red, de-seeded and diced
2 – 4 cloves garlic, peeled and finely diced
2 large carrots, peeled and diced
500ml hot vegetable stock
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
salt and pepper
Method:
Pour the olive oil into a large saucepan and add all of the chopped and diced vegetables. (Skin the tomatoes by placing then in hot water for 1 minute, then remove and slip the skins off them before dicing)
Put the lid on the pan and cook over a high heat for about 5 minutes or until the tomatoes have released their juices and the onions are slightly softened. Pour in the hot stock and add the smoked paprika, season to taste with salt and pepper and simmer over a low heat for 45 minutes. Allow to cool slightly and ladle half of the soup into a blender or bowl; whizz it all up in the blender or purée with a stick blender in the bowl until smooth, then pour the soup back into the saucepan.
Gently reheat, adjust seasoning before serving in warm soup bowls with chopped fresh herbs and croutons.
(Serves 6)
2 tablespoons olive oil
6 large ripe tomatoes, skinned and diced
2 small courgettes, diced small
2 onions, peeled and diced
2 peppers, green, yellow or red, de-seeded and diced
2 – 4 cloves garlic, peeled and finely diced
2 large carrots, peeled and diced
500ml hot vegetable stock
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
salt and pepper
Method:
Pour the olive oil into a large saucepan and add all of the chopped and diced vegetables. (Skin the tomatoes by placing then in hot water for 1 minute, then remove and slip the skins off them before dicing)
Put the lid on the pan and cook over a high heat for about 5 minutes or until the tomatoes have released their juices and the onions are slightly softened. Pour in the hot stock and add the smoked paprika, season to taste with salt and pepper and simmer over a low heat for 45 minutes. Allow to cool slightly and ladle half of the soup into a blender or bowl; whizz it all up in the blender or purée with a stick blender in the bowl until smooth, then pour the soup back into the saucepan.
Gently reheat, adjust seasoning before serving in warm soup bowls with chopped fresh herbs and croutons.
(Serves 6)
Bye for now, see you later and have a wonderful Slow Sunday too.
Victoria says
I've got a slow sunday stew bubbling away in the oven as I type this. Your soup looks divine…if any of my friends brought me an allotment haul like that I would be in tears of joy! Enjoy your slow sunday and can't wait to see next week's posts! (figs!)
A Trifle Rushed says
I love the addition of paprika, such a subtle spice to warm up a scrumptious soup. Thanks doe your gingerbread house advice, it's very kind of you. Jude x
Kate@whatkatebaked says
What a kind present Karen! Do you think Jeff would kindly pop across to London- does he do a delivery service? And what a beautiful soup – I do love this time of year and the comfort gained from a tasty, nutritious, warming soup.
La Table De Nana says
Great gifts the allotment produce..what fun..
The soup sounds very good too:)
Bee happy says
A lovely post, the food colours remind me of Autumn so much, me thinks I will pop down to the kitchen to see what I can find to nibble on you have made me very hungry!!
Bee happy x
Have a delicious day!
Heather says
I love a good red soup 🙂 that's what my daughter calls tomato soup– 'red soup.' This looks so yummy! Im so glad we're entering the season for savory slow cooked meals. they're so good! This looks like a great autumn dish~
Dom at Belleau Kitchen says
I absolutely love it… so perfectly rustic and autumnal!… I bet it would be great with a chunk of goats cheese melting into it!
Inside a British Mum's Kitchen says
There's nothing like soup from the garden! love these ingredients and the warming spices – would like a bowl right now!
Mary
Janice says
Lovely! Nothing wrong with lots of warm coloured soup, esp with a touch of pimenton!
Ocean Breezes and Country Sneezes says
What a delicious looking soup! I think I make soup every week when the weather turns cold. There's just something about the comfort you get from it.
Also, thank you for your kind words about my mom, she will be forever missed and in our hearts.
Laura@howtocookgoodfood says
How I love this time of year and you are so lucky to have Jeff to donate some of his amazing vegetables…..I aim to be able to create a soup like this next year, when the allotment is producing some goodies for me!
Lauren says
My husband has an aversion to the texture of zucchini, so I'm thinking he could be convinced to eat this since it's blended! This sounds awfully yummy and perfect for early autumn!
Brownieville Girl says
Love everything about this soup, and the photos are fantastic.
Kentish Keg-Meg says
Great to be given those lovely vegetables. Soup sounds just right for this time of year.
MeLikeyUK says
Wonderful wholesome soups Karen. Warms the heart and the body. A nice addition to an Autumn menu 😉
Priya Sreeram says
what a hearty looking soup – loved all the flavours in it !
Choclette says
Your friend Jeff is a fabulous man and newspaper parcels can unveil a veritable treasure trove of goodies. I love your red and orange soups – please keep them going.
Fabulicious Food says
Lucky you – what a fantastic parcel from Jeff! Lovely soup – I like that you left some of the vegetables in and blitzed the rest. I'd never get away with that for my kids…but for adults it would be lovely. Yum yum, English Allotment Soup next on my list. Now to accost someone with an allotment!