Rose Elliot - Rose Elliot’s New Complete Vegetarian

Add the drained cooked beans and the macaroni or pasta shapes and cook until the pasta is just tender, about 8-10 minutes.

Season with salt and pepper, and serve in warm bowls with torn fresh basil leaves sprinkled over the top. Hand the cheese round separately for people to help themselves.

This soup is so quick and easy and also very soothing and nourishing. You can buy dried wakame seaweed from any good health-food shop and many supermarkets. You only need a little and what is left over will keep perfectly in a dry place for months. Good-quality, unpasterised miso is also widely available; you’ll find it a useful flavouring for many savoury dishes, but always remember to add it at the end of cooking to preserve the health-giving enzymes it contains.

SERVES 4

5cm (2in) piece of wakame seaweed

2 dried shiitake mushrooms, if available

1.2 litres (2 pints) water

4 spring onions, chopped

4 tsp brown rice miso

Soak the wakame and shiitake mushrooms in a cupful of the water for about 10 minutes, then drain, reserving the liquid.

Cut the wakame into shreds, discarding any hard bits, and slice the mushrooms. Put these into a large saucepan, along with their soaking water, the 1.2 litres (2 pints) of water, and the spring onions and simmer for 5–10 minutes.

Put the miso into a small bowl, add a ladleful of the soup and stir until blended, then tip the mixture back into the pan. Leave the pan over the heat for 2–3 minutes, without letting it boil, then serve.

You don’t need beef stock to make a delectable French onion soup. This vegetarian version fills the house with its aroma as it cooks and keeps everyone satisfied, I promise you.

SERVES 4

1 tbsp olive oil

450g (1lb) onion, sliced

1 tbsp flour

850ml (1½ pints) water

1 tbsp high-quality bouillon powder

3 tbsp sherry

1 large garlic clove, crushed

4 tsp Dijon mustard

salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 slices of baguette

75–125g (3–4oz) Gruyère cheese, grated

Heat the oil in a large saucepan and fry the onions slowly for 15–20 minutes until they’re golden, stirring from time to time.

Add the flour and cook for a few seconds before stirring in the water, bouillon powder, sherry, garlic, mustard and some salt and pepper.

Bring to the boil, then leave to simmer gently, covered, for 30 minutes.

Just before the soup is ready, warm four heatproof soup bowls and lightly toast the baguette. Heat the grill to medium-high.

Check the consistency of the soup, adding a splash of boiling water if it needs to be a bit thinner, and adjust the seasoning to taste.

Put a slice of toasted baguette into each bowl and ladle the soup on top. Scatter with the grated cheese and place the bowls under the grill for a few minutes. Serve the soup immediately, bubbling and oozing with molten cheese.

This is one of the soups that I grew up with, and one I often made for guests when working at a retreat centre. It’s a beautiful soup that costs next to nothing to make.

SERVES 4

1 tbsp olive oil

15g (½oz) butter

225g (8oz) parsnips, peeled and diced

1 carrot, sliced

1 potato, peeled and diced

1 onion, chopped

1 bay leaf

425ml (15fl oz) water

425ml (15fl oz)milk

salt and freshly ground black pepper

1–2 pinches of ground mace

dusting of paprika, to garnish

Heat the oil and butter in a large saucepan, add the parsnips, carrot, potato and onion and fry over a gentle heat, with a lid on the pan, for 10 minutes.

Add the bay leaf, water and milk. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 30 minutes. Remove the bay leaf, then blend the soup.

Season with salt, pepper and mace. Serve with a dusting of paprika on top.

This delicious soup from southern France makes a filling main course with warm crusty bread.

SERVES 4

2 onions, chopped

100ml (3½fl oz) olive oil

2 carrots, chopped

2 potatoes, peeled and diced

225g (8oz) courgettes, sliced

125g (4oz) green beans, sliced

450g (1lb) tomatoes, skinned and chopped

225g (8oz) dried haricot beans, soaked, cookedand drained, or 2 x 400g cans

1.7 litres (3 pints) vegetable stock or water plus 4 tsp bouillon powder

50g (2oz) vermicelli

salt and freshly ground black pepper

5 garlic cloves, crushed

leaves from a bunch of basil

Fry the onions in 3 tablespoons of the oil in a large saucepan for 5 minutes. Add the carrots and potatoes and cook for 5 minutes.

Add the courgettes, green beans, tomatoes, haricot beans and the stock. Bring to the boil, cover and simmer for 20–30 minutes.

Add the vermicelli and cook for 8–10 minutes or until it’s tender. Season well.

While the soup is cooking, whiz together the remaining oil with the garlic and basil. Stir this fragrant purée into the soup and serve in warmed bowls.

Frozen peas make a vivid green soup with a very smooth texture. It looks lovely swirled with cream and flecked with dark green chopped mint, and is good either hot or chilled.

SERVES 4

1 tbsp olive oil

15g (½oz) butter

1 onion, chopped

900g (2lb) frozen peas

1.2 litres (2 pints) light vegetable stock or water

a few sprigs of thyme

salt and freshly ground black pepper

TO GARNISH

150ml (5fl oz) single cream

2 tbsp chopped fresh mint

Heat the oil and butter in a large saucepan, add the onion and fry gently for 5–7 minutes, with a lid on the pan, until fairly soft but not browned.

Add the peas, the stock or water and the thyme. Bring to the boil, then simmer for about 15 minutes or until the vegetables are soft.

Blend, and if you want it silky soft, make sure you do this thoroughly. For perfection, you could then pass it through a sieve, pushing through as much of the pea purée as you can, but this isn’t by any means essential – you’ll still have a great soup without this extra effort.

Season the soup and gently reheat, then ladle into bowls and top each with a good splash of cream and a scattering of mint.

Although this is a simple soup, it always tastes good, with its smooth creamy texture and topping of fresh green herbs.

SERVES 4

1 tbsp olive oil

15g (½oz) butter

1 onion, chopped

450g (1lb) potatoes, peeled and diced

850ml (1½ pints) water

salt and freshly ground black pepper

150ml (5fl oz) single cream

2 tbsp chopped fresh herbs (such as chives, parsley or tarragon), to garnish

Heat the oil and butter in a large saucepan. Add the onion and fry gently, with a lid on the pan, for 3–4 minutes. Add the potatoes, stir, then cover and cook gently for a further 5 minutes, without browning.

Pour in the water, bring to the boil, then simmer for about 15 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.

Blend the soup, stir in the cream, then season with salt and pepper.

Reheat and serve sprinkled with the fresh herbs.