Spiced carrot and butternut squash soup; Beetroot and apple bortsch
Spiced carrot and butternut squash soup
Gordon Ramsay
Serves 4
The carrot and squash start to break down after half an hour’s cooking and, together with the starch from the pasta, will thicken the soup without the need for a blender. This is great for a hungry family.
1 red onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
2 large carrots, peeled
1 medium butternut squash, peeled and deseeded
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2-3 thyme sprigs, leaves picked
1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped, or ¼ tsp dried crushed chillies
1.2 litres vegetable stock
75g dried spaghetti or small pasta shells
1 Sweat the onion and garlic in the oil over a medium heat for 5-7 minutes until soft. Chop the carrots and butternut squash into 1.5cm dice and add to the pan. Season and cook for another 6-7 minutes until the vegetables start to soften.
2 Stir in the thyme leaves and the fresh or dried chilli, then pour in the stock. Stir and bring to the boil. Simmer for 25-30 minutes until the carrots and squash are soft and beginning to break down.
3 Break the spaghetti into small pieces into the soup or add the pasta shells. Stir well and return to the boil. Simmer for about 10 minutes or until the pasta is cooked and the soup has thickened slightly. Check for seasoning and ladle into soup bowls.
Beetroot and apple bortsch
Cooking apple gives this simplified bortsch a very agreeable grainy flavour and the sharpness complements the sweetness of beetroot extremely well. The idea came from the novelist Paul Bailey. It is delicious hot but much better cold
Serves 4
Prep: 20 min
Cook: 20 min
1 medium onion
1 large garlic
olive oil
1 large cooking apple, about 300g
1 small lemon
4 medium raw beetroots, approx 500g
800ml hot stock (or 1/2 stock cube dissolved in 800ml boiling water)
METHOD
Peel and finely chop or grate the onion. Peel, chop and crush the garlic with a pinch of salt to make a juicy paste. Heat the oil in a heavy-based, lidded pan and gently soften the onion and garlic. Meanwhile, quarter, peel and chop the apple. Toss with juice from half the lemon. Trim and peel the beetroots, then grate on the large-hole side of a cheese grater. Add the apple and juices, the beetroot and a generous seasoning of salt and pepper to the softened onion. Add hot stock, bring to the boil and boil for 10 minutes until the apple is broken down and the beetroot tender. Liquidize. Return to a clean pan, reheat, taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and lemon. Serve hot with a dollop of soured cream and snipped chives, cold and on its own.
Parsnip soup with chestnuts and mixed herb pesto
Gordon Ramsay
Serves 4
This is a stunning soup with a fantastic, velvety texture, perfect for serving as a first course for a dinner party. Cooked and peeled chestnuts are widely available in large supermarkets, either in the speciality aisles or near the stuffing mixes.
1kg parsnips
Olive oil, for cooking
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
700ml stock
100ml double cream
75g cooked and peeled chestnuts, chopped
Extra virgin olive oil, to drizzle
For the pesto
50g blanched skinless hazelnuts
1 tbsp roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 tbsp roughly chopped basil
1 tbsp roughly chopped tarragon
100ml olive oil
1 Peel and chop the parsnips into equal-sized chunks. Heat the olive oil in a large pan and add the parsnips and some seasoning. Cover and sweat the parsnips for 8-10 minutes over a medium heat, stirring from time to time. Remove the lid, pour in the stock and bring to the boil. Cook for 15-20 minutes or until the parsnips are really soft.
2 For the pesto, roast the hazelnuts on a baking sheet in a hot oven until golden; cool completely. Tip them into a food processor. Pulse a few times, then add the herbs and pulse again. With the motor still running, slowly pour in the olive oil and blend until you have a runny pesto. Check for seasoning. (The pesto will keep for a couple of days in the fridge, covered with a thin layer of olive oil.)
3 Blend half of the parsnips and stock in a food processor or liquidiser until smooth. Blend the remaining parsnips and stock, then add to the rest. For a really smooth finish, pass the soup through a sieve over a large bowl, pushing it through with the back of a ladle.
4 Pour the soup into a clean pan, stir in the cream and season to taste. Return to the boil and simmer until you have a fairly thick consistency. While the soup is simmering, roast the chestnuts in a frying pan with a little oil and seasoning until lightly golden. Drain on kitchen paper. Serve the soup in warm bowls and sprinkle over the chestnuts. Dot the pesto on the surface, then drizzle with extra virgin olive oil.
Gordon Ramsay
Serves 4
The carrot and squash start to break down after half an hour’s cooking and, together with the starch from the pasta, will thicken the soup without the need for a blender. This is great for a hungry family.
1 red onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
2 large carrots, peeled
1 medium butternut squash, peeled and deseeded
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2-3 thyme sprigs, leaves picked
1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped, or ¼ tsp dried crushed chillies
1.2 litres vegetable stock
75g dried spaghetti or small pasta shells
1 Sweat the onion and garlic in the oil over a medium heat for 5-7 minutes until soft. Chop the carrots and butternut squash into 1.5cm dice and add to the pan. Season and cook for another 6-7 minutes until the vegetables start to soften.
2 Stir in the thyme leaves and the fresh or dried chilli, then pour in the stock. Stir and bring to the boil. Simmer for 25-30 minutes until the carrots and squash are soft and beginning to break down.
3 Break the spaghetti into small pieces into the soup or add the pasta shells. Stir well and return to the boil. Simmer for about 10 minutes or until the pasta is cooked and the soup has thickened slightly. Check for seasoning and ladle into soup bowls.
Beetroot and apple bortsch
Cooking apple gives this simplified bortsch a very agreeable grainy flavour and the sharpness complements the sweetness of beetroot extremely well. The idea came from the novelist Paul Bailey. It is delicious hot but much better cold
Serves 4
Prep: 20 min
Cook: 20 min
1 medium onion
1 large garlic
olive oil
1 large cooking apple, about 300g
1 small lemon
4 medium raw beetroots, approx 500g
800ml hot stock (or 1/2 stock cube dissolved in 800ml boiling water)
METHOD
Peel and finely chop or grate the onion. Peel, chop and crush the garlic with a pinch of salt to make a juicy paste. Heat the oil in a heavy-based, lidded pan and gently soften the onion and garlic. Meanwhile, quarter, peel and chop the apple. Toss with juice from half the lemon. Trim and peel the beetroots, then grate on the large-hole side of a cheese grater. Add the apple and juices, the beetroot and a generous seasoning of salt and pepper to the softened onion. Add hot stock, bring to the boil and boil for 10 minutes until the apple is broken down and the beetroot tender. Liquidize. Return to a clean pan, reheat, taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and lemon. Serve hot with a dollop of soured cream and snipped chives, cold and on its own.
Parsnip soup with chestnuts and mixed herb pesto
Gordon Ramsay
Serves 4
This is a stunning soup with a fantastic, velvety texture, perfect for serving as a first course for a dinner party. Cooked and peeled chestnuts are widely available in large supermarkets, either in the speciality aisles or near the stuffing mixes.
1kg parsnips
Olive oil, for cooking
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
700ml stock
100ml double cream
75g cooked and peeled chestnuts, chopped
Extra virgin olive oil, to drizzle
For the pesto
50g blanched skinless hazelnuts
1 tbsp roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 tbsp roughly chopped basil
1 tbsp roughly chopped tarragon
100ml olive oil
1 Peel and chop the parsnips into equal-sized chunks. Heat the olive oil in a large pan and add the parsnips and some seasoning. Cover and sweat the parsnips for 8-10 minutes over a medium heat, stirring from time to time. Remove the lid, pour in the stock and bring to the boil. Cook for 15-20 minutes or until the parsnips are really soft.
2 For the pesto, roast the hazelnuts on a baking sheet in a hot oven until golden; cool completely. Tip them into a food processor. Pulse a few times, then add the herbs and pulse again. With the motor still running, slowly pour in the olive oil and blend until you have a runny pesto. Check for seasoning. (The pesto will keep for a couple of days in the fridge, covered with a thin layer of olive oil.)
3 Blend half of the parsnips and stock in a food processor or liquidiser until smooth. Blend the remaining parsnips and stock, then add to the rest. For a really smooth finish, pass the soup through a sieve over a large bowl, pushing it through with the back of a ladle.
4 Pour the soup into a clean pan, stir in the cream and season to taste. Return to the boil and simmer until you have a fairly thick consistency. While the soup is simmering, roast the chestnuts in a frying pan with a little oil and seasoning until lightly golden. Drain on kitchen paper. Serve the soup in warm bowls and sprinkle over the chestnuts. Dot the pesto on the surface, then drizzle with extra virgin olive oil.