Weekend Cooking: Soup

We are just getting to the end of soup weather here, but I know for lots of people it is just about to begin. I thought I would share two soup recipes this week. One was a new recipe to me this winter and the other was a rediscovery of a recipe I made a few years ago but then had lost the recipe. An added benefit of sharing is that I will have them saved in more than one place when I am looking for the recipes again next winter.

First the new recipe which I found on Taste.com.au- Potato, Leek and Ham Soup

• 25g butter
• 2 leeks, washed, trimmed, sliced
• 600g potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped
• 7 cups (1.75L) water
• 500g ham hock
• 3 flat-leaf parsley stalks
• salt and cracked black pepper
• chopped chives, to serve

1. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add leek and cook for 3 minutes or until soft (do not brown).
2. Add potato, water, ham and parsley and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour or until ham is soft. Remove ham and transfer to a plate to cool slightly. Remove soup from heat and set aside.
3. Shred the ham roughly. Remove parsley stalks from soup. Using a hand blender, process the soup until smooth. Return 3/4 ham to soup and return pan to the heat for 2 minutes or until soup is warmed through. Season with salt and pepper. Ladle soup between serving bowls and top with remaining ham and chives. Serve immediately.

The second soup was one I originally found in Superfood Ideas a few years ago. My son specifically requested this for dinner one night, which was surprising given that we hadn't had it for ages! I had to go looking for the recipe so I was pleased to find it again, this time on Taste.com.au. (You might get the idea that this website is my go to website for recipes, and you would be right!)

Vegetable, Bacon and Risoni Soup

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 brown onion, finely chopped
• 125g 97% fat-free bacon, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 carrots, peeled, chopped
• 1 parsnip, peeled, chopped
• 1 celery stick, chopped
• 2 small zucchini, chopped
• 6 cups reduced-salt beef stock
• 400g can diced roma tomatoes
• 1/3 cup dried risoni pasta**
• 1/3 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves, roughly chopped

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion, bacon and garlic. Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until soft. Add carrot, parsnip, celery and zucchini. Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes.
2. Add stock and tomatoes. Stir to combine. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low. Cover. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 45 minutes or until vegetables are soft.
3. Stir in risoni. Cook for 12 to 15 minutes or until risoni is tender. Season with salt and pepper. Stir through parsley. Ladle soup into bowls. Serve.

Risoni pasta is small rice like pasta. This soup is best made on the day of serving. If making ahead, cook the risoni pasta separately and stir into the soup just before serving.

Weekend Cooking is hosted by Beth Fish Reads and is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book (novel, nonfiction) reviews, cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, fabulous quotations, photographs.