PETER GORDON’S CHUNKY VEGETABLE SOUP
Peter Gordon’s chunky vegetable soup
Great as a weekend brunch dish when served with toasted thickly sliced sourdough drizzled with olive oil. The sharper the cheese you use to sprinkle on the better – you need something grunty to cut through the richness of the soup - try an aged Cheddar, Parmesan, feta or pecorino.
Serves 6–8
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 large red onion, peeled and sliced
1 Tbsp coarsely chopped hard herbs (rosemary, sage, thyme, oregano) or 2 tsp dried mixed herbs
6 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
1/2 leek (about 20cm), sliced into 1cm-thick rings, washed to remove grit if necessary
500g pumpkin or butternut squash, peeled, seeded and diced
1 parsnip, skin scrubbed or peeled then diced (around 1cm dice)
2 celery sticks, sliced ½ cm thick
1 x 400g can chickpeas or pulses, drained
1 litre vegetable stock or chicken stock
¼ broccoli head, cut into chunks stalks and all (peel the stalk if woody)
100g coarsely grated cheese
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 Tbsp snipped chives, to garnish
Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large saucepan. Sauté the onion with the herbs and garlic until caramelised
Add the leek, pumpkin, parsnip, celery, pulses and stock. The stock should cover the vegetables by 1 – 2 cm – if not top up with extra stock or hot water.
Bring to a boil, then reduce to a gentle boil, put a lid on and cook until the pumpkin and parsnip are just cooked
Add the broccoli and cook for a further 10 minutes
Stir in the cheese with salt and pepper to taste. Ladle into piping hot bowls and sprinkle on the chive