Pea and leek summer soup with potato croutons

Summer and soup does seem to be a bit of an oxymoron. Think of soup, and your mind conjures up images of steaming hot bowls, thick and rich with earthy warming flavours - not exactly what you crave when the temperature is rising. Here in the UK, however, a summer’s day can be just as cold and dreary as a mild day in winter (at the time of writing this I’m sat under a blanket despite it being the end of May), so I think that a summer soup is an entirely appropriate thing to have in your recipe repertoire.

Far from the thick potato-based soups, or those made with squash and spices, this pea and leek soup is light and fresh rather than deep and comforting. Earthy leeks, shallot and garlic are gently sweated in a pan to soften and sweeten, before the fresh-flavoured peas and stock are added and blended to an almost lurid green liquid. A final squeeze of lemon adds sharpness to the soup, and a dollop of crème fraîche adds creaminess.

I always think that soups are nicest when served with something a bit crunchy, whether that be a nice hunk of crusty bread or some crispy croutons floating on the top. You might have established by now that I have a deep love for potatoes, so I thought I’d go a bit rogue with this recipe and try out some potato “croutons” to go on the top, and you know what - it works! My croutons are essentially mini hash browns, made with grated potato and shallot which is then wrung out to within an inch of its life to remove as much liquid as possible. I then add in a little garlic powder, dried mixed herbs and salt for flavour (not too much salt though, made that mistake the first time I tried this!) and some oil before shaping into little patties and baking in the oven for 30 minutes. You could alternatively pan fry them, but I prefer the low-hassle approach of putting them in the oven to cook. These then get floated on top of the finished soup and add a bit of texture and substance to an otherwise light and smooth liquid.

Let me know if you rustle this one up, I’d love to know what you think!

Pea and leek summer soup with potato croutons

Serves: 4 | Total time: 1hr | Source: vicki cooks veggie

Ingredients

For the soup:

• 500g (1lb 1oz) leeks (this ends up at about 225g/8oz leeks once the ends have been trimmed)

• 1 echalion/banana shallot

• 2 cloves garlic

• 2 tbsp rapeseed oil, or another vegetable oil

• 800ml (3 ⅓ cups) vegetable stock (I make mine with 800ml boiling water and 3 OXO vegetable stock cubes)

• 400g (14oz) frozen peas (use the best quality ones you can find for a smoother soup)

• 60g (4 tbsp) crème fraîche (optional - dairy or plant based)

• ½ lemon

• Salt and pepper

For the potato croutons:

• 250g (9oz) potato (a floury variety)

• 1 echalion/banana shallot

• ½ tsp dried mixed herbs

• ¼ tsp garlic powder

• ¼ tsp salt

• 2 tsp rapeseed oil, or another vegetable oil

Method

• First, let’s prepare the potato croutons. Give the potatoes a quick wash, then grate coarsely using a box grater (you don’t need to peel the potatoes). Peel the shallot then grate in the same manner.

• Add the grated potato and shallot to a colander, then squeeze out as much liquid as you can from the mixture. Once the potato and shallot are as dry as you can get it, add them to a bowl and stir in the dried mixed herbs, garlic powder, salt and rapeseed oil.

• Divide the mixture into 12 small patties and place them on a non-stick baking tray. Preheat the oven to 200°C (390°F); while it’s heating up we’ll start on the soup.

• Trim the green tops and the roots from your leeks, then slice in half lengthways and chop into semicircles about 1cm thick. Add the sliced leeks to a colander and rinse well with cold water to remove any sand or grit. Roughly chop the shallot and garlic cloves.

• Once the oven is hot, place the potato patties into the oven and cook for 30 minutes, flipping halfway through.

• Take a large saucepan with a lid, and heat up 2 tbsp rapeseed oil on a low heat. Add the washed leeks, shallot and garlic to the pan, and sweat the vegetables gently with the lid on for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. You don’t want the leeks to colour, only to soften in the steam and oil.

• After 15 minutes, add the 800ml/3 ⅓ cups vegetable stock carefully to the pan, along with the 400g/14oz frozen peas. Simmer for a further 15 minutes with the lid on.

• Either using a stick or jug blender, blend the soup until smooth. If you want a really smooth soup, you can pass the liquid through a sieve, otherwise simply season to taste with salt and pepper, then squeeze in the juice of half a lemon and stir well.

• Serve the soup in bowls, topped with 1 tbsp crème fraîche per portion, 3 potato croutons and a good grinding of black pepper.