Roast Garlic and Parsnip Soup Recipe

Roast Garlic & Parsnip Soup
SERVES 6
PREP 25 minutes
COOK 55 minutes
COST $3.45 a serve

Ingredients:

• 3 heads garlic
• ¼ cup vegetable or olive oil
• 20g butter, plus 80g extra, chopped
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1.2kg parsnips, coarsely chopped
• 1.5 litres boiling water
• 3 large chicken stock cubes
• 1 cup cream
• ¼ cup sage leaves
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• Purple sage flowers (optional), to serve

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 180ºC/160ºC fan-forced. Place garlic on a large sheet of foil. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon of the oil. Wrap to enclose garlic. Place on an oven tray. Roast for 30 minutes or until tender. Cool. Squeeze garlic from skins. Discard skins; set flesh aside.
2. Meanwhile, heat butter and remaining oil in a large heavy-based saucepan over moderate heat. Cook and stir onion and parsnip for 6 minutes or until soft and golden. Add the water and crumbled stock cubes. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat; simmer, covered, for 45 minutes or until parsnip is tender. Add garlic and cream. Remove from heat. Using an electric stick mixer, process soup until smooth.
3. Heat extra butter in a frying pan over moderate heat until it foams. Add sage leaves; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until crisp. Drain on paper towel. Add juice to pan. Bring to the boil. Remove from heat. Serve soup scattered with sage flowers, if using. Drizzle soup with sage butter.

Tomato Soup with Toasted Cheesy Melt Recipe

Tomato Soup with Toasted Cheesy Melt

Serves 4 to 6
EASY GREAT VALUE
Preparation: 15 minutes
Cooking: 25 minutes

Ingredients:

• butter 1 T
• olive oil 3 T
• leeks 3, finely chopped
• garlic 3 cloves, finely chopped
• bay leaves 3
• tomato paste 2 T
• ripe tomatoes 8, roughly chopped
• Italian chopped tomatoes 1 x 390 g can
• chicken stock 2 cups
• sea salt and freshly ground black
• pepper, to taste
• white bread 6 thick slices
• mature white Cheddar 240 g, sliced

Directions:

1. In a saucepan, gently fry the leeks in the butter and oil over a medium heat until soft and golden. Add the garlic and bay leaves and cook for 2 minutes.
2. Add the tomato paste and ripe tomatoes and cook until soft. Add the remaining ingredients except the bread and cheese and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove the bay leaves.
3. Pour the soup into a blender and blend until still slightly chunky.
4. Preheat the oven’s grill to its highest temperature. Place the bread onto a baking tray and top with the Cheddar slices. Grill until bubbling and golden. Serve with the soup.

Leek and Chicken Broth with Avo Baguette Recipe

Leek and Chicken Broth with Avo Baguette

Serves 4
EASY
Preparation: 15 minutes
Cooking: 25 minutes

Ingredients:

• olive oil 1 T
• free-range chicken breasts 2, quartered
• leeks 3, cut into chunks
• celery 2 sticks, thinly sliced
• garlic 4 cloves, finely chopped
• chicken stock 4 cups
• baby spinach 2 cups
• parsley 1 cup roughly chopped
• rosmarino pasta 2 cups, cooked al dente
• French baguette 1, halved and toasted
• avocados 2, mashed
• lemon 1, juiced
• sea salt and white pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Fry the chicken in the olive oil over a very high heat. Remove from the pan. Add the leeks, celery and garlic and fry until the leeks are soft.
2. Return the chicken to the pan. Add the stock and baby spinach and warm through. Add the parsley.
3. Just before serving, add the cooked pasta.
4. Generously spread the avocado onto the baguette. Squeeze over some lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Serve with the chicken broth.

Italian Bean and Smoked Pork Soup Bunny Chow Recipe

Italian Bean and Smoked Pork Soup Bunny Chow

Serves 6
EASY GREAT VALUE
Preparation: 20 minutes
Cooking: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

• olive oil 2 T
• onion 1, finely chopped
• leeks 2, finely chopped
• garlic 2 cloves, finely chopped
• celery 2 sticks, roughly chopped
• carrots 4, peeled and roughly chopped
• thyme 3 sprigs
• pork rashers 400 g, halved
• bay leaves 4
• tomato paste 1 T
• Worcester sauce 2 T
• beef stock 4 cups
• borlotti beans 1 x 400 g can, drained
• sea salt and freshly ground black
• pepper, to taste
• fresh sourdough bread 1 loaf, hollowed
• Parmesan ¼ cup grated

Directions:

1. Gently fry the onion and leeks in the olive oil until translucent and golden brown. Increase the heat and add the garlic, celery, carrots, thyme and pork rashers. Cook for 5 minutes, or until the pork rashers have coloured.
2. Add the bay leaves and tomato paste and cook for 1 minute. Add the Worcester sauce and beef stock. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes or until the pork pulls apart. Add the borlotti beans for the last 5 minutes of cooking time.
3. Toast the bread in a preheated oven for 5 minutes until slightly golden. Fill with the bean-and-pork soup and sprinkle over the Parmesan.

Spinach, Broccoli and Zucchini Soup Recipe

Spinach, Broccoli and Zucchini Soup

Preparation time: 10 mins
Cooking time: 25 mins
Serves 6

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 brown onion, finely diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 300g broccoli, florets and stalks roughly chopped
• 2 small zucchini (about 400g), cut into 1cm cubes
• 1.5L vegetable stock (see Cook’s tips, opposite)
• 80g baby spinach leaves
• ½ cup mint leaves, plus extra, to serve
• ½ cup flat-leaf parsley leaves, plus extra, to serve
• 1 lemon, finely zested, then sliced into wedges, to serve
• Sea-salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper, to season
• Sour cream or Greek-style yoghurt, to serve
• 1 cup finely shredded red cabbage, to serve
• 2 brussels sprouts, finely shredded, to serve
• ¼ cup pine nuts, toasted, to garnish

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a large heavybased saucepan over a medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 6 minutes, or until onion is soft and lightly browned.
2. Add broccoli florets and stalks and zucchini, cooking for a further 2 minutes. Pour in stock, increase heat to high and cover with lid. Bring to the boil, then reduce heat to medium and simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes.
3. Spoon 2 cups of the soup into a blender (see Cook’s tips, opposite). Add spinach, mint and parsley. Puree until smooth, then transfer to another large saucepan or a large jug. Put remaining soup in blender, roughly process then add to first pureed batch. Stir in lemon zest and season generously.
4. Spoon into serving bowls. Top with sour cream or yoghurt, cabbage, brussels sprouts, pine nuts and extra mint and parsley. Serve with lemon wedges on the side.

Ham Hock Minestrone Soup Recipe

Ham Hock Minestrone

Adding a ham hock to your stockpot is an easy way to give soup a delicious depth of flavour
Preparation time: 15 mins
Cooking time: 2 hours 5 mins
Serves 6

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra, to drizzle
• 1 red onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1L chicken stock
• 1 ham hock
• 2 carrots, diced
• 2 sticks celery, diced
• 1 small red capsicum, diced
• 1 desiree potato, peeled, cut into 1cm cubes
• 1 swede, peeled, cut into 1cm pieces
• 400g can chopped tomatoes
• 400g can borlotti beans, drained, rinsed
• 1 zucchini, cut into 1cm cubes
• ½ cup small dried pasta (such as macaroni)
• ½ cup basil leaves Parmesan chips, to serve

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a large heavybased saucepan over a medium heat. Add onion and garlic, cooking for 5 minutes or until soft. Pour in stock and 2.5L hot water, and bring to a simmer. Carefully add ham hock and cook, partially covered with a lid, for 1 hour or until meat is very tender and falling off the bone.
2. Add carrot, celery, capsicum, potato, swede, tomato and beans. Bring to a simmer, cooking for a further 30 minutes.
3. Remove pan from heat. Remove ham hock and set aside on a chopping board for 10 minutes. When cool enough to handle, remove and discard skin. Pull ham meat off bone and shred. Discard bone.
4. Return shredded ham to pan, along with zucchini and pasta, and stir. Cook for 20 minutes or until pasta is tender. Tear ½ of the basil and add to soup.
5. Ladle soup into serving bowls and drizzle over the extra oil. To serve, scatter with remaining basil leaves and top each bowl with a parmesan chip.