Broccoli and basil soup / Carrot, orange and thyme soup

I hate waste. I rarely throw anything away. Having said that I love eating fresh ingredients. So what do I do with that piece of broccoli that has been left in the fridge for a few days? Well I make soup of course!
In the summer I love salads but once the weather changes out comes my soup pan. Practically every weekend I will have a pan of homemade soup ready at hand. The nice thing about most soups is they can be made in the time it takes to locate a can opener! (since mine is usually jammed up in my overfull kitchen drawer) And think of all that added salt not to mention all the other additives found in tin soup! I admit on occasions I do eat tin soup- but even then I just can't leave it alone- a dash of olive oil here- for great looks, a few chopped fresh tomatoes there- for a fresh taste!
Soup is great way for using up vegetables that are just past their best, as was my broccoli- don't worry, if the broccoli has turned yellow I DO throw it away!
I have a large American side by side refrigerator and sometimes there can be a few 'lost' veggies lingering. Perhaps not quite enough left of any one vegetable to make a complete dish for a family of four, a leek, a few carrots, a piece of cauliflower, a few tomatoes- but ideal to contribute in making a vegetable soup.
There is nothing more comforting than a bowl of steaming soup and a chunk of Focaccia on a cold day. My favourites include mustard, lentil, pumpkin or butternut squash, carrot, and broccoli. The soup I least care for is tomato soup! And I know the Dutch are crazy about tiny meatballs in their soup- but I'm not!
I'm not great at food presentation but I love my soups to look pretty. Toppings include fresh herbs, croutons, a drizzle of flavoured olive oil, or a swirl of crème fraise these all make a difference to appearance as well as taste. These two soups are fairly simple and a splash of flavoured oil really help to lift them.

I eyed my piece of broccoli, I wanted to make a quickie soup. It is often paired with (blue)cheese, mainly Stilton- nothing wrong with that but I wanted something different. I still had some fresh basil in my kitchen and I picked what was left of my home grown basil in the garden and went to work to make my delicious and very healthy soup. Broccoli is vitamin rich (A, B, C & K complex), contains nutrients like potassium, magnesium, iron, and calcium, is high in fiber and even has anti-cancer properties. Combined with basil it produces a fragrant but delicate tasting creamy soup.

Broccoli and Basil Soup

Serves 4
Ingredients:
2 large potatoes
Broccoli
1 large onion
2 cloves garlic
olive oil
Approx 750ml water or stock
200ml cream, I used UHT cream which I always have on hand.
large bunch of Basil
small bunch parsley
pesto
salt and pepper
croutons
olive oil or basil flavoured olive oil ( available at AH- Excellent)

Preparation:
Peel potatoes and chop them into cubes. Chop onion and garlic (don't bother to crush it because the soup will be pureed anyway). Chop the broccoli stalks in cubes and make florets from the broccoli. Boil a kettle of water.



Method:
In a large pan heat some olive oil (approx 2 tbsp.) Add the chopped onion and fry for a few minutes. Add garlic and potatoes. Cook slowly for about 10 minutes. Add the broccoli and stir fry for a few minutes. Add approx 3 mugs of boiling water (or stock). Stir and bring to the boil, then simmer until the broccoli is cooked. Add salt and pepper to taste. Turn off the heat, add the roughly chopped basil (reserve some whole leaves for garnish), parsley and cream. Blend with the immersion blender. Add pesto to taste (couple of table spoons) Re-heat but do not boil. Serve with a few croutons, basil leaves, a dollop of pesto and a dash of basil/ olive oil. You could add a sprinkling of parmesan and a few pine nuts.

Another all time favourite in our household is carrot soup- you know you are on a winner when you get requests for carrot soup!
I grew up hating carrots, we're not talking about those lovely sweet little carrots like I buy now a days- I mean those big strong 'tasting monsters that are even unpleasant to eat raw!
Because I loathed carrots so much and we were always 'encouraged' to finish our plates, I introduced my own children to small portions. I would offer them each a carrot to eat raw while I was preparing dinner. Later they started expecting one- I was on the right track!
It obviously worked because not only do my two eat their 'greens' they actually enjoy them.
This soup is sweet and fragrant. Cumin and thyme are perfect with carrots. I quickly made it as part of testing out MY NEW Magimix- yes I finally did it! (A Magimix blog will be coming soon) so it is a simple no fuss soup but lovely none the less. Unfortunately my camera let me down on this day so I apologise for the poor quality pics.
I have Thyme in my herb garden. It is a perennial, so winter hardy. It is available all year round, obviously it is at it's best in the summer months. It does stop growing in the colder monthsso should be only harvested lighly.

Carrot, Orange and Thyme Soup

Serves 4
Ingredients:
8 small carrots/ Dutch worteltjes (Approx 400gr)
2 small red onions
olive oil
1 red pepper (capsicum)
2 garlic cloves
200ml orange juice
1 tbsp. ground cumin
a shake of chili flakes
salt and pepper
2 tsp honey (or sugar)
several sprigs of thyme
small bunch of parsley
approx 750ml water/stock
large knob of butter
Olive oil/ chili oil ( AH excellent) to serve


Method:
I grated the two red onions and garlic in the Magimix You could of course chop manually. Hear the olive oil in a large pan and add the onions/garlic.
Grate the carrots and grate/slice the red pepper. After a few minutes add this to the pan together with the cumin, chili flakes and thyme- stripped from their woody stems.
Add your sweetener (honey or sugar), the water/stock and bring up to the boil. Simmer the carrots until tender- they won't need long because the carrots are grated.
Turn off the heat, add the orange juice and roughly blend with an immersion blender- I personally like some bite in my soup. Bring up to the boil, add the chopped parsley (gives a fresh taste), a large knob of butter, seasoning and serve with a sprig of thyme and a drizzle of (chili) olive oil.

Albert Heijn 'Excellent' flavoured olive oil.
These flavoured olive oils are an excellent addition to any dish; risotto, soup, pasta, omelette, or simply over vegetables. Available in bottles of 250ml.