THE POWER OF SOUP
IS THERE ANYTHING MORE REVIVING THAN A STEAMING BOWL OF SOUP AND A HUNK OF FRESHLY BAKED BREAD TO DIP INTO IT? HERE ARE THREE DELICIOUS DOUBLE ACTS TO TRY
Cullen skink
Cullen skink is a traditional creamy smoked haddock soup from the north east of Scotland, as cosy and comforting as can be – made thick with potatoes then finished with lots of pepper. Pair it with freshly baked or just toasted soda bread spread with thick, cold butter.
Serves 6
500g smoked haddock 300ml water 1 bay leaf 50g butter 2 leeks, washed and chopped 2 medium sized potatoes, chopped into chunks 500ml whole milk Handful of chives
1 Put the fish, water and bay leaf into a low, wide pan, cover and bring to the boil. As soon as the water boils take it off the heat. Leave it to sit for a couple of minutes and then lift the fish – which should now be cooked – out onto a plate, reserving the cooking water. When the fish is cool, flake it, discarding any bones and skin.
2 Melt the butter in a saucepan and then sweat the leeks, covered, for at least 20 mins until soft and translucent. Add the potatoes and stir well, then add the water and bay leaf from the fish pan. Simmer until the potatoes are tender, then lift out a couple of big spoonfuls of the leek and potato mixture and set aside.
3 Add the milk and half the fish and bring to a simmer, then blend with a stick blender. Add the rest of the fish, and the reserved leeks and potato, heat through, season with salt and lots of freshly cracked pepper, and serve topped with snipped chives.
Soda bread
Soda bread is the quickest and simplest bread to make, requiring no mucking about with yeast, as the rising agent is bicarbonate of soda. It makes it no less delicious, quite the opposite in fact, and wholemeal flour gives it a wonderfully rustic look and nutty flavour. It is traditionally made with buttermilk, but using a mixture of yogurt and whole milk also works very well.
Makes 1 loaf
170g wholemeal flour 170g plain flour 1 tsp salt 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda 1 tsp baking powder 3 tbsp plain yogurt Full fat milk (up to around 290ml)
1 Preheat oven to 200C/Fan 180C/ 400F and prepare a baking tray lined with baking parchment. Combine all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl, and mix.
2 Spoon the yogurt into a measuring jug and then pour in milk to make up 290ml in total. Stir until yogurt and milk are combined and then pour it into the dry mix and stir with a spoon until roughly combined (if the mixture is too dry you may need to add a little more milk at this stage).
3 Use your hands to knead the dough very briefly, just enough to bring it together and shape it into a mounded round. Place it onto the baking sheet and cut a deep cross into the centre of the mound.
4 Bake for 30 minutes or until the
Ribollita
This Italian soup translates as ‘reboiled’, and traditionally it is made one day for eating the next. It is thickened with bread, but don’t let that stop you from pairing it with an airy, herby focaccia.
Serves 6
2 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for drizzling 2 onions, chopped 2 carrots, roughly chopped 3 cloves garlic, finely sliced 400g tin chopped tomatoes 250g cooked cannellini beans 250ml water or stock 1 tsp dried oregano 2 slices white bread, ideally stale A few handfuls of cavolo nero, roughly chopped Small handful of chopped parsley
1 Heat the olive oil in a pan and gently fry the onions, carrots and garlic until softened and translucent.
2 Add the tomatoes, beans, water or stock, and oregano and bring to the boil, then simmer for 30 mins.
3 Tear up the bread and add it to the pot, along with the cavolo nero, and simmer for another 20 mins.
4 Season and divide into bowls. Drizzle each serving with olive oil and sprinkle with parsley. Or follow tradition and leave overnight to let the flavours marry together, then reheat and serve the following day.
Focaccia
A lovely, airy bread for dipping in oil or soup. This recipe is based on Paul Hollywood’s and works brilliantly.
Makes 2 loaves
500g strong white bread flour 10g salt 10g instant yeast 140ml extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for kneading and drizzling 360ml cold water 2 tsp dried oregano 1 tsp sea salt flakes
1 Lightly oil a square or rectangular plastic storage box. Measure the flour, salt and yeast into a bowl. Make a well in the centre and pour in 40ml of the oil and 240ml water, then stir in with your fingers, adding more water as you need it until all of the flour is incorporated. You may not need to use all the water but you should create a fairly wet dough.
2 Coat your work surface with some of the remaining olive oil, tip the dough onto it, and knead for around 10 mins, adding more olive oil if the dough starts to stick. Drop the dough into the plastic container and cover with a clean tea towel. Leave to double in size: about an hour.
3 Cover two baking sheets in parchment and drizzle on olive oil, then tip the dough out of the container and as gently as possible cut it into two pieces and stretch them into rectangles on the baking sheets, taking care not to knock the air out of them. Cover with clean tea towels and leave to rise for another hour.
4 Preheat oven to 220C/Fan 200C/ 425F. Use fingers to make dimples all over the focaccia, then drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle on herbs and salt. Bake for around 15 mins, or until golden on top and hollow sounding when the bottom is tapped. Drizzle on more oil and leave to cool on a wire rack.
Bacon, red lentil and thyme soup
This is a really warming and hearty soup, and irresistible topped with crunchy bacon pieces and onions.
Serves 4
2 tbsp vegetable oil 1 onion, finely diced and 1 onion, sliced 8 rashers smoked bacon 200g dried red lentils, well washed 800ml water 1 bay leaf Bunch of thyme Double cream
1 Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a saucepan on a medium heat and add the diced onion. Snip six rashers of bacon into the pan and fry until the onion is translucent and slightly caramelised, and the bacon is crisping.
2 Stir in the red lentils, pour on the water, add the bay leaf and half the thyme and simmer for 15 mins, or until the lentils are soft. Remove the bay leaf and blend with a stick blender, then taste and season.
3 To make the toppings: fry the sliced onions until browned and crispy, then drain them on kitchen paper until needed. Grill the remaining pieces of bacon until crispy. Heat the soup and pour into bowls and top with a splash of double cream, some fried onions and crumbled bacon and a few fresh thyme leaves.
Cheesy pull-apart rolls
A doughy cheese-topped delight that goes wonderfully with this satisfying, smoky soup.
Makes around 9 rolls
500g strong white flour, plus extra for dusting 2 tsp salt 7g instant yeast 300ml cold water 3 tbsp olive oil 150g mature cheddar cheese, grated Optional: pieces of hard mozzarella
1 Tip the flour, salt and yeast into a bowl and stir, then pour in the water and olive oil and mix.
2 Dust your work surface with flour and knead the dough for 10 mins, then place in a clean bowl, covered in a clean tea towel. Leave the dough to rise for around an hour, until roughly doubled in size.
3 Tip out of the bowl and knead briefly again, then form balls of dough a little larger than ping pong balls, and put a piece of mozzarella in the centre of each if you like.
4 Arrange them in a round cake tin, leaving plenty of space for them to expand, and grate the cheese over them, so that it falls in between each. Cover with a tea towel and leave to rise for an hour, until doubled in size.
5 Preheat oven to 220C/Fan 200C/ 425F. Bake the rolls for around 25 mins. Remove and leave to cool for a few minutes before pulling apart and eating while still warm.