Watercress soup

ingredients:

1 tablespoon plain flour
1.2 litres/2 pt vegetable stock
1 onion, chopped
15g/ 1/2oz butter
2 eggs, hard-boiled and finely chopped
salt and freshly ground
black pepper
350g/12oz watercress, roughly chopped
1?4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
50ml/2fl oz single cream

How to cook?

• Sweat the onion in the adulate for 2 minutes, add the watercress and cook, active with a board spoon, for a added 2 minutes. Stir in the flour. Remove from the calefaction and gradually alloy in the stock.
• Acknowledgment to the heat, and accompany to the boil, stirring. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Reduce the calefaction and simmer for 20 minutes.
• Alloy or action to a puree, and acknowledgment to a apple-pie pan. Stir in the chrism and reheat gently. Sprinkle the chopped eggs on top and serve.

Oxtail soup

ingredients:

2 sprigs of fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 bay leaf
1 carrot, diced
2 celery sticks
salt and freshly ground
2 tablespoons pearl barley
1 tablespoon plain flour mixed with 2 tablespoons water
1 large onion, diced
black pepper
25 g / 1 oz beef dripping
2 oxtails

How to cook?

• Melt the decrepit in a abundant saucepan. Fry the oxtails, onion and allotment until brown, again add 1.2 litres / 2 pt water.
• Tie the celery, parsley and bay blade together, and add to the soup.
• Bring to the boil, add the fair barley and simmer for 4 hours, bribery off any algae that rises to the surface.
• Remove the ample basic and celery, parsley and bay leaf, again thicken the soup with the abrade paste, active all the while.
• Season with alkali and pepper, and serve hot.

Minestrone

ingredients:

100g / 4oz carrot, chopped
100g / 4oz celery, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
150g / 5oz cabbage, coarsely chopped
1 courgette, chopped
75g / 3oz soup pasta such as orzo or ditalini
100g / 4oz onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
425g / 15oz canned cooked red kidney beans, drained
400g / 14oz canned chopped tomatoes

How to cook?

1. Pour 900ml / 1 1/2pt baptize into a ample abundant saucepan. Add the carrot, celery, onion, garlic, basil, oregano and pepper.
2. Bring to the boil, again abate the heat. Cover the pan, and simmer the admixture for 15 minutes.
3. Add the branch beans to the pan with the tomatoes, cabbage, courgette and pasta. Return to the abscess and abate the heat. Cover the pan and simmer for 5–10 account until the pasta is adapted until al dente. Serve hot.