creamy soups

Over a glass of prosecco at a wine bar in Covent Garden, my friend Anna asked me for tips on making creamy soups without the guilt. She's just returned from a year exploring the globe and is reassimilating to life 'as normal'. Creamy soups taste amazing but they aren't the most health-conscious option.

I bombarded her with options:

-Use a root vegetable puree as your base, and add skimmed milk if necessary (it often isn't). See the Cream of Parsnip Soup on the Epicurious website: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/234083.
Their recipe calls for half-and-half, but I've used skimmed milk and it's delicious.


-Use an old parmesan rind in the soup to give it a silky, but subtle creamy texture. I save these in the refrigerator.


-Use a white bean puree as your base. I found this idea on a South Beach website and tailored it to my taste.

creamy italian white bean soup
(serves 2 heartily)
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped or lots of leeks
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 clove garlic, minced
2 courgettes
2 tins of cannellini beans (or any other white bean), drained and rinsed
750 ml chicken or vegetable stock
black pepper
fresh herbs - ideally some thyme and chives
250 ml water
1 small bag baby spinach
1 tablespoon lemon juice

In a pot, heat oil. Add onion and celery and cook for 5 to 8 minutes or until tender. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds, continually stirring. Add beans, chicken broth, pepper, thyme and water. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil, and then simmer uncovered for 15 minutes. While soup is simmering, rinse spinach.

With slotted spoon, remove 2 cups of the bean and vegetable mixture from soup and set aside. Using a hand blender, blend remaining soup in small batches until smooth (it helps to remove the center piece of the blender lid to allow steam to escape.) Once blended pour soup back into stock pot and stir in reserved beans.

Bring to a boil, occasionally stirring. Stir in spinach and cook 1 minute or until spinach is wilted. Stir in lemon juice and remove from heat.

This dish is great because it's filling and healthy. Pete often will have some bread with it, too, if it's not enough. But it usually is.