White Bean Soup

White Bean Soup

30ml olive oil
30g butter
4 cloves of garlic, minced
3 x 400g cans of cannellini beans
500ml vegetable stock
5ml finely chopped rosemary
5ml finely chopped thyme leaves
sourdough croutons to serve

Place a saucepan on medium-high heat, add the olive oil and butter and wait for the pan to heat up.
Add the garlic and stir-fry for 1 minute.
Drain 2 of the cans of beans and add the beans to the saucepan.
Pour the third can of beans, liquid and all, into a liquidiser and blitz until smooth.
Add to the saucepan.
Pour in the stock and add the rosemary and thyme.
Grind over some black pepper and stir together.
Bring the soup to a boil, turn the heat down and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring every now and then.
Taste the soup and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.
Serve piping hot with freshly made croutons.

Cock-a-Leekie Soup

Cock-a-Leekie Soup

4 large leeks, sliced into coins
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 litre chicken stock
3 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
250ml cooked chicken, finely shredded
2 bay leaves
125ml cream

Place a saucepan over medium-high heat and add some olive oil to it.
Add the leeks and stir-fry until it is really soft.
Take about 2 spoonfuls of the leak out of the saucepan and keep aside as garnish.
Add the garlic and stir-fry for another minute.
Pour in the chicken stock, add the potato, chicken and bay leave and simmer the soup for 30 minutes.
Remove the bay leaves and mash the potato against the side of the saucepan. I like my soup to have uneven bits of potato to add texture but you may blitz it at this stage if you prefer.
Pour in the cream and season the soup with salt and black pepper.
Cook for a minute or two before serving with a fresh loaf of bread.