Pea and lettuce soup

I know, cooked lettuce! Blerk. I thought the same thing at first, but this soup may surprise you. Add a scatter of cheesy crackers, a herbed drizzle and that's what I call a showy little number.

Pea and lettuce soup Credit: Jiwon Kim

• serves

  2

• prep

  10 minutes

• cook

  30 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

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Ingredients

• 2 sheets ready-made frozen shortcrust pastry
• 1½ cups (150 g) freshly grated cheddar cheese
• ¼ cup (15 g) finely snipped chives
• 60 g (¼ cup) salted butter
• 1 leek, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, chopped
• ¼ cup (5 g) flat-leaf parsley leaves
• 1 iceberg lettuce
• 500 g (3 ¾ cups) frozen baby peas
• 1 litre chicken stock (or vegetable)
• ⅓ cup sour cream, plus extra for dolloping
• black pepper, to serve

Drizzle (optional)

• ¼ cup good quality olive oil
• 1 cup mixed herbs (e.g. chives, coriander, parsley)
• 1 small garlic clove
• 1 tsp salt

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 180˚C. Lay one sheet shortcrust pastry onto baking paper, then sprinkle with the grated cheese and chives. Top with the second layer of shortcrust pastry, then a second sheet of baking paper.
2. Press down gently and evenly. Cut into shapes with a biscuit cutter, then bake for 15 minutes, or until golden. Allow to cool, store in an airtight container for up to a week.
3. In a large heavy-based saucepan, melt the butter over low heat, then add the leek and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes, until softened.
4. Meanwhile, to make the drizzle, in a small saucepan, heat the olive oil, mixed herbs, garlic and salt until hot. Remove from the heat and allow to cool before blitzing in a food processor or blender to a bright green, smooth consistency.
5. Roughly chop the flat-leaf parsley and lettuce and add to the leek, along with the peas and the stock. Bring to a simmer for 15 minutes until everything is wilted and cooked.
6. Use a stick blender to purée the soup with the sour cream to your desired consistency.
7. Serve the soup in small bowls with the cheesy crackers, the herbed drizzle and an extra dollop of sour cream. Add some freshly cracked black pepper, if you like!

Note

• To thoroughly clean leeks, cut the darker end a few times so it can feather out and place top down, in a jug of water. The ends will open up and any dirt or grit should fall out. This can soak while you're making the crackers.

Photography by Jiwon Kim.

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Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.

Stream free On Demand

Soup To Nuts

Watch the full episode here

G

Watch the full episode here

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