CHICKEN STOCK RECIPE

Chicken Stock Recipe
It is a good idea if you can, to make your own stock for soup recipes. You can buy all types of stock cubes which are convenient and good to use. I always use them when I have no stock of my own. The photograph above shows you the stock ingredients before I have added the water and cooked it.
Ingredients
Chicken bones, I roasted a chicken and used the left over carcass as the basis for my stock
2 onions chopped
2 carrots chopped
1/2 cabbage chopped
1 tablespoon of mixed herbs or some fresh herbs such as Rosemary
4 cloves of garlic chopped
salt and pepper
5 bay leaves
5 pints--2.5 litres water
Method
I prepared all the ingredients, put them into a large pot and covered with the water. Bring to the boil, cover and simmer for 1 hour. Taste and season as required.
Sieve the stock and pour into 2 pint containers, to store in the freezer for future use or use straight away for a soup.
Variations
1. Add any other vegetables of your choice to add depth and richness of flavour to the stock.
2. Double the ingredients.
3. Try to get more chicken bones from your butcher or market.

FOLIC ACID IN A HEALTHY DIET

In my Times newspaper 24 November 2006 there was an article that said that folic acid can help in the reduction of heart disease and strokes. Previous research has found that it can help some cancers and Alzheimer's disease. The sources of this folic acid ( vitamin B) are in the following foods, green leafy vegetables such as Brussels sprouts, broccoli, spinach and green beans, oranges, dried beans, peas and lentils. I am hoping to include more soup recipes which include these delicious foods and help us to have a healthy life style and healthy diet.

SWEET POTATO AND CHICKPEA SOUP

Sweet Potato and Chickpea soup recipe
This is a really thick and filling soup recipe. It is like a meal in itself or you could serve a smaller quantity as a first course to a meal. It is a lovely rich colour and goes well with granary bread.
Ingredients
1/8--30gm--1oz--butter or olive oil
4 1/2 cups--600gm-- lb5oz--sweet potato, peeled and cut up into small cubes or chunks
2 onions chopped fine
1.14litres--2 pints of chicken or vegetable stock
4 cups--400gm--14ozs--cooked chickpeas, these can be bought ready cooked in tins which saves time
2 red chillis chopped fine
salt and pepper
Method
Melt the butter or heat the olive oil. Add the sweet potato and the onion, sweat on a low heat with the lid on until the vegetables are soft. Remove lid to check it is not to hot and the food is not sticking to the pan. This takes about 20 minutes.
Add the stock, chickpeas and chilli. Bring to the boil. Season with the salt and pepper. Simmer for about 20 minutes. Liquidise half the soup and return to the pan.
Serve
Variations
1. Liquidise all the soup.
2. Add some cream at the end.
3. Add some creme fraiche at the end.
4. Garnish with chopped rosemary.
5. Garnish with chopped fresh coriander leaves.

This soup freezes really well. I freeze soup in freezer soup bowls ready to go in the microwave as required. This saves time and energy.

ENJOY

LEEK AND POTATO SOUP RECIPE

Leek and Potato Soup Recipe

Ingredients

4 large leeks sliced and washed

3 medium potatoes, peeled, washed and diced

1 1/2 pints chicken or vegetable stock

2 0z butter or 2 tablespoons of olive oil

salt and pepper

fresh herb of your choice

Method

Put olive oil in a pan or melt butter in the pan

Add leeks and potatoes, cook on low heat for 15 minutes with lid on the pan , called sweating the vegetables

Add the stock, salt and pepper, simmer for 20 minutes, until everything is soft

Liquidise half the soup and return to the pan

serve and sprinkle with herbs

Variations

1 Liquidise all the soup

2 Do not liquidise at all

3 Put in 1 pint of stock and 1/2 pint of milk

4 Add cream at the end of cooking

5 Serve with your favourite grated cheese

6 Make double and put in the freezer

Leek and Potato Soup Recipe

TOMATO SOUP RECIPES

Tomato Soup Recipe
Ingredients
3 1/2 cups--1 1/2 lb--700gm--fresh tomatoes, cut into quarters and leave the skins on
1 large onion chopped
1 medium sized potato diced
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
1/2 pint of vegetable or chicken stock, fresh or a stock cube
2 teaspoons of fresh chopped basil or dry basil if the fresh is not available
1 1/2 tablespoons of olive oil
salt and pepper
Method
Heat the olive oil in a large pan a with a thick base or cast iron, add the onion and potato, fry gently until both are soft this will be about 10 minutes and do not brown the onions and potato.
Add the tomatoes, stir using a wooden spoon and cook gently for about 4 minutes. Add the stock, salt, pepper and garlic. Cover the pan and simmer for 35 minutes. Pass the soup through a sieve to remove the skins etc. Serve with bread and garnish with herbs.
Variations
Tomato preparation
1. Put the tomatoes in a bowl, cover with boiling water and leave for a few minutes. Remove from the water and remove the skins. Quarter the tomatoes. Now use in the soup recipe but do not sieve the soup just place in a liquidiser. I prefer this method.
2. You can always remove the seeds with the skins and leave as a chunky soup.
These ideas are for personal preference.
Enjoy this soup recipe.

CELERY SOUP RECIPE

CELERY SOUP RECIPE
This is a delicious soup, thick in texture with a good flavour. It does not take long to make this soup recipe.
INGREDIENTS
A whole celery about 1 lb or 370gm--washed, sliced into thin pieces and the leaves reserved along with some of the really tender central stalks for garnish.
5oz --110gm --1 cup potatoes, washed, peeled and diced.
2 leeks washed and finely sliced.
1 1/2 --750ml--pints of stock, this can be from a vegetable or chicken stock cube or your own freshly made stock.
salt and pepper
1oz butter or 2 tablespoons of olive oil depending on your preference.
METHOD
Heat the butter or olive oil in a pan, add the celery, potatoes and leeks. Cook on a gentle heat. Stir until they are well mixed and coated. Put the lid on and let the vegetables sweat for 15 minutes on a lower heat. Check and stir to ensure that they do not brown or burn.
Add the stock, salt and pepper to taste, stir and simmer for 20 minutes.
At this point I liquidise the soup and return to the pan to reheat.
VARIATIONS
After liquidising you can add cream to the recipe so that you have Cream of Celery Soup Recipe or you could add about 1/4 pint of milk which would not be as rich.
To serve the soup add the celery garnish to the individual portions.

This shows the first stages of the celery soup recipes. The vegetables are sweating in the pan.

The celery soup is served with the garnish of celery leaves and the celery heart.

Enjoy

MUSHROOM SOUP RECIPE

This is a really tasty soup that is quick to make and can have a few variations to suit your own preferences.
INGREDIENTS
1oz--25gm--butter or 2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 small onion
2oz--50gm--1/2 cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon oregano
1/8 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
1.5 pints--750ml homemade stock or a chicken stock cube
1 lb--450gm--5 cups mushrooms cleaned and sliced
1 bay leaf
Optional Ingredients
1/4 pint double cream
1/4 pint single cream
1/4 pint natural yoghurt
Method
Take a large pan melt the butter or heat the olive oil to a moderate heat. Add the onion and fry gently until the onion is transluscent not brown about 7 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the flour, salt, pepper, oregano and cayenne which will make a smooth paste. Gradually stir in the chicken stock. Make sure there are no lumps. Add the mushrooms and bay leaf. Put the pan back on the heat, bring it to the boil and then turn down the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove the bay leaf.
At this point you can leave the soup whole or you can liquidise and then serve. If you like cream add it now and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until it is hot. If you like yoghurt add to the soup, stir and heat gently.
Serve the soup with granary bread or bread of your choice. Garnish with a swirl of cream and a sprinkle of fresh or dried herbs.
ENJOY

PEA and HAM SOUP

Ingredients to serve 4
80z-225gm 1 cup of green peas (soak peas in water overnight, rinse and drain.
1.5litres-2.5 pints of ham stock water
1 ham shank,soak overnight in water to remove salt, throw away the water.
2 carrots chopped
2 onions chopped
1 leek sliced finely
3 bay leaves
salt and fresh ground black pepper
Method
Place the ham shank in a large pan and cover with water, add bay leaves and seasoning, bring to the boil and simmer for 40 mins until the ham is cooked. Remove the cooked ham from the bone and put in reserve.
In a separate pan place the soaked peas, cover with the ham stock and bring to the boil. Add the leek, onion and carrots. Add the ham bone, taste and season with salt and pepper. Simmer for 40 minutes. Remove the ham bone and liquidise the soup in a blender. Return to the pan and simmer.
Serve the soup with the diced ham as a garnish.
Variations
1. Use yellow split peas as an alternative.
2. Use split peas and green peas.
3. Garnish with fresh chopped herbs such as parsley or coriander.
4. Add more carrots or do more peas and leave out the carrots.
5. Experiment with the flavours and ingredients that you enjoy.