Bowls of comfort: seven soothing soup recipes to get you through winter
When the throw blanket isn't cutting it, soup feels like the best way to warm up from the inside out. It's nourishing, versatile and you can make use of the season's best veggies, with leftovers for easy office lunches.
Here are seven recipes for simple soups, ranging from a 15-minute tom yum to a Slavic recipe that transforms sad root vegetables. Swap your knives and forks for spoons and get slurping.
(Pictured above)
When you're facing a dinner-time emergency, Lara Lee's sweet, sour and spicy soup is a quick and delicious solution. Store-bought tom yum paste is the key ingredient, and if you don't have prawns you can sub them out for your preferred protein or veg. 'I've used it to rescue meals for the best part of my adult life,' Lee says.
It's a classic for a reason. To nail the ultimate pumpkin soup, we're taking notes from Felicity Cloake, who recommends using stock instead of water. 'I prefer chicken to vegetable stock [as] it tends to blend more easily with other ingredients: pumpkin is easily overwhelmed by more strident vegetables,' she says. She keeps it simple with sauteed red onions and carrots to enhance the pumpkin's sweetness.
You'll need at least an hour to roast the beetroot and garlic for this vibrant, fragrant soup but the results will be worth it. The sweetness from the beetroot is complemented by the tartness of the saffron-infused yoghurt that is dolloped on top. Ottolenghi finishes his with a sprinkle of almonds. It's a dish he says reminds him of the flavours of home.
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Colder weather not only brings sniffly noses but also a lack of energy and motivation. Both are symptoms of what Hetty Lui McKinnon has called 'the mid-season slump'. Let lashings of ginger, garlic and bok choy simmer away to create the perfect soup for when you are in need of a pick-me-up. 'This is a dish is designed to restore our sense of wellbeing,' McKinnon says.
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Unassuming at first, but packing a punch, the humble kidney bean is the base of this hearty soup. Don't let the mention of dumplings scare you as they come together quickly with a simple combination of flour, salt and thyme. Once the soup has thickened, top with extra crispy bacon for a surge of 'salty deliciousness', as Jack Monroe puts it.
There is nothing more disheartening than seeing wilted vegetables at the bottom of your fridge's crisper drawer but they don't have to be a lost cause. Alice Zaslavsky has a tasty Slavic recipe that transforms sad root vegetables into a nourishing meal. Soften fennel, carrot, potato, turnip and cabbage together for a cost-effective option that lasts up to a week.
The French restaurateur Marc Kuzma believes that making french onion soup from scratch is 'one of the easiest dishes' you can make. His one-pot wonder can be whipped up in 15 minutes from eight ingredients, including half a cup of cognac and white wine. 'Using a good quality cognac and white wine is very important,' Kuzma says.
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When the throw blanket isn't cutting it, soup feels like the best way to warm up from the inside out. It's nourishing, versatile and you can make use of the season's best veggies, with leftovers for easy office lunches. Here are seven recipes for simple soups, ranging from a 15-minute tom yum to a Slavic recipe that transforms sad root vegetables. Swap your knives and forks for spoons and get slurping. (Pictured above) When you're facing a dinner-time emergency, Lara Lee's sweet, sour and spicy soup is a quick and delicious solution. Store-bought tom yum paste is the key ingredient, and if you don't have prawns you can sub them out for your preferred protein or veg. 'I've used it to rescue meals for the best part of my adult life,' Lee says. It's a classic for a reason. To nail the ultimate pumpkin soup, we're taking notes from Felicity Cloake, who recommends using stock instead of water. 'I prefer chicken to vegetable stock [as] it tends to blend more easily with other ingredients: pumpkin is easily overwhelmed by more strident vegetables,' she says. She keeps it simple with sauteed red onions and carrots to enhance the pumpkin's sweetness. You'll need at least an hour to roast the beetroot and garlic for this vibrant, fragrant soup but the results will be worth it. The sweetness from the beetroot is complemented by the tartness of the saffron-infused yoghurt that is dolloped on top. Ottolenghi finishes his with a sprinkle of almonds. It's a dish he says reminds him of the flavours of home. Sign up for the fun stuff with our rundown of must-reads, pop culture and tips for the weekend, every Saturday morning Colder weather not only brings sniffly noses but also a lack of energy and motivation. Both are symptoms of what Hetty Lui McKinnon has called 'the mid-season slump'. Let lashings of ginger, garlic and bok choy simmer away to create the perfect soup for when you are in need of a pick-me-up. 'This is a dish is designed to restore our sense of wellbeing,' McKinnon says. Sign up to Saved for Later Catch up on the fun stuff with Guardian Australia's culture and lifestyle rundown of pop culture, trends and tips after newsletter promotion Unassuming at first, but packing a punch, the humble kidney bean is the base of this hearty soup. Don't let the mention of dumplings scare you as they come together quickly with a simple combination of flour, salt and thyme. Once the soup has thickened, top with extra crispy bacon for a surge of 'salty deliciousness', as Jack Monroe puts it. There is nothing more disheartening than seeing wilted vegetables at the bottom of your fridge's crisper drawer but they don't have to be a lost cause. Alice Zaslavsky has a tasty Slavic recipe that transforms sad root vegetables into a nourishing meal. Soften fennel, carrot, potato, turnip and cabbage together for a cost-effective option that lasts up to a week. The French restaurateur Marc Kuzma believes that making french onion soup from scratch is 'one of the easiest dishes' you can make. His one-pot wonder can be whipped up in 15 minutes from eight ingredients, including half a cup of cognac and white wine. 'Using a good quality cognac and white wine is very important,' Kuzma says.
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