Broccoli and Stilton soup
Tuesday morning, T-5 and the Christmas countdown checklist has been verified, computed and coordinated with DH. Kids clubs are carefully sprinkled through the week to allow me to keep on track with the shopping, wrapping and cooking, and to be honest try and keep the stress levels down and the potential for pre-Christmas beer up!
With school holidays here, I am thinking about food even more than normal, mainly because I have two purple minions asking to devour something at any given opportunity….snack, snack, snack. It’s a challenge even for me in the holidays with no break from school dinners, to find something for them to eat (I have one fusspot and one fuss free eater!); But feeding kids is another blog for another person….not fuss free at all, so not for me!
Christmas excess is a well-documented issue, and for me, I try (as always) at Xmas to reduce the amount of food being wasted and try and make great meals from leftovers. I don’t know whether its the frustrated ready, steady, cook competitor inside of me, but I do love the challenge of making something from nothing. The reason I love soups so much is because they use up those slightly older bits and pieces and are reinvented into something beautiful.
Like any great super couple, I have given Broccoli and Stilton soup a new hybrid name…Br-ilton! With a new fuss free name, this soup which is certainly fuss free to make and delightful to eat. It uses any leftover Stilton from your cheese board (Fuss Free Foodie Christmas cheese board), and if you have it, leftover cooked broccoli from Xmas day or just use a fresh head of broccoli which you can buy everywhere. When I made this soup, my Stilton was SO old I should’ve thrown it away weeks ago…but trimmed off the edges and all was good! Hopefully, you will give this crowd-pleaser a try.
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Br-ilton Soup (Broccoli and Stilton Soup)
Serves 4
1 medium onion, diced
1 tbsp butter
splash of olive oil
1 head of broccoli (hand sized!) separated into small florets ,
stem more finely chopped
1 leek, sliced or 5-7 spring onions, chopped
1 medium potato (250-300g), peeled and small dice
1L veg stock (I use Kallo organic)
120-150g Stilton, crumbled
Salt and Pepper
Optional, swirl of cream or olive oil
1. Put the butter and splash of oil in a pan (the oil will stop the butter burning) and sweat the onions for 3 minutes, let them have a head start then add the leeks or spring onions for 5 minutes until they are all translucent and soft.
2. (If using cooked broccoli skip this, and go to 3.) Add the chopped raw broccoli stalks and cook them for a few minutes. Season with a couple of twists of salt and pepper.
3. Add the broccoli florets, potatoes and stock. Simmer for 5-7 minutes until the broccoli is tender and the potatoes are soft. If they are not cooked, test every minute or two until soft. Keep the vibrant colour by not overcooking.
4. If using cooked broccoli, add to the pot once the potatoes are soft, warm it through for a minute or 2.
4. Use a stick blender to blitz the soup, then add the Stilton, stir and serve. Alternatively, put in a food blender and pour back into the pan, and add the Stilton and stir.
5. Serve into a bowl, with a swirl of cream or olive oil. Enjoy with a lovely sourdough, or artisan bread or whatever you can get your hands on over Xmas!