Soup of the Month
A series of simple soup recipes – a new one every month. All the ingredients for the soups will be available in the shop in the month it’s published.
With chickpeas for extra body.
INGREDIENTS:
2 tbsp olive oil
2 medium onions, peeled and finely sliced
Salt and black pepper
2 small garlic cloves, peeled and finely sliced
1litre vegetable stock
3 bunches watercress (roughly 350gms)
400g tin chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1½ tsp garam masala
3tbsp plain yogurt – plus extra to serve
METHOD:
Bring a pan of salted water to the boil. Blanch the watercress for 2 minutes, until the tougher stalks are just tender. Drain and plunge into iced water. Leave for a minute and then gently squeeze out the excess water and roughly chop.
Heat the oil in a heavy-based pan. Add the onion and cook over a medium heat for 10 mins until soft but not coloured. Add the garlic and cook gently for another 2 minutes.
Add the stock and chickpeas. Check the seasoning and add salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Blitz with a hand blender or food processor until smooth.* Stir in the garam masala and add the chopped watercress. Blitz briefly again until the watercress is finely chopped. Check the seasoning, add salt and pepper if required. Stir in the yogurt just before serving.
Serving suggestion:
Top each bowl with a spoonful more natural yogurt.
*Watercress is usually available April to October. In the summer months you could serve this chilled by chilling down the chickpea mixture before adding the watercress.