The Observer monthly food supplement this week was 20 of the ‘best’ seasonal classics. It happens every year – food publications do an autumn special on comfort food.

Now, I may be a little stuck-in-the-mud, not down-with-the-food-kids, but I cannot see a beetroot and egg salad as autumn comfort food. Nice easy recipe but I am not sure on these darkening evenings, the Best Beloved would see a beetroot salad as anything very comforting.

Neither am I convinced by fish fragrant aubergines  and likewise chickpeas, swiss chard and soft poached eggs – but that maybe because I am not a huge chickpea fan and have never mastered a poached egg.

( I have never doubted that Jeremy Lee has a much more refined palate than me but would love to hear that his real idea of comfort food is spaghetti hoops on toast.)

Risotto yes, dal yes, a really good bolognese yes, but where are the savoury pies, cassroles/stews? I fancy the tomato curry but expecting to get ‘fresh green peppercorns 2 branches’ in Petersfield is as likely as hearing the government say they might have got a few things wrong.

So, onto soup. 

I should point out at this stage that I have taken no photos – artful or otherwise – of the soups I make so recipes come without illustrations. Sorry.

There is a rather interesting soup recipe in the Observer supplement which I might do. 

And hats off to Olia Hercules (partly for having such a good name) but also because she says what all soup cooks know, suggestions on  what you can substitute, and using up stuff from the freezer or fridge.

Soup is a staple in our house not least because the BB has home-made soup with bread and cheese every day for lunch come rain or shine. He likes his smooth, so a stick-blender is great and not much washing up. 

I like variations on a minestrone but as he is soup king, smooth soup commentary comes first and you will have to go to the end to find the chunkier stuff.

Did you know that the word restaurant morphed from restoratif, which was soup sold by street vendors in 16th century Paris. https://soupmakerguide.co.uk/soup-through-the-ages-the-history-of-soup/

I like that, soup is restorative, healthy and comforting and a great way to use those veg found at the back of the fridge or reduced in the supermarket, or a glut of tomatoes or courgettes etc etc.

It also keeps for days and is a good source of the 5 veg a day.

I am no good a writing recipes – no wonder all these chefs and famous cooks have assistants to test and be accurate with quantities, it is not that easy.

But here goes with some soup stuff.

Basically, you need some stock, some veg, meat if you want it, and some thickening agent – potatoes, sweet potatoes, red lentils, squash….. 

If like me you like to get a few meals out of a roast chicken, you can make stock and that adds a real nice depth. Take your carcass and put with a litre of water and some flavourings – peppercorns, herbs or spices as you fancy a bit of salt, a bayleaf or two always helps I think.

Simmer for an hour or so. Take out bones and pick off chicken slivers and put back in. If you want a concentrated flavour then simmer briskly until reduced to half the quantity.

Soup 1 is a combination made from what was left at the back of the fridge more than a decade ago – I realise that sentence could be misread, so a minimum of food hygiene considerations do need to apply.

Soup 1

Chop up a two red peppers and get rid of seeds. Chop up some leeks say three of them. Some sweet potato chopped – one large, or two small say – these are quantity suggestions.

Obviously, the smaller you chop everything the quicker it will cook.

Cook the peppers and leeks in a glug of oil as Jamie Oliver would say, until softening and don’t let the leeks go brown at the edges.

Add in a litre of stock – cube, fresh, I use Marigold Bouillon – and the sweet potato. As well as any herbs/spices you fancy ( I don’t use any in this soup.)

When everything is nicely soft, blend it and taste so that you can add salt or pepper or whatever.

Soup 2

Take some frozen peas – use the same amount as you would a serving of peas per person. 

Peel and chop up some potatoes ( not new potatoes as they don’t mush well.) Use a medium sized potato per two servings.

Add in stock  to cover the potatoes and peas to say two centimetres above the veg. Bear in mind you can always add some stock if you end up with something too thick but it is not easy to take it out…

Cook until potatoes are soft and if you have some fresh mint, add the leaves in just before you think everything is cooked. If you have mint jelly or mint sauce, you can add a dollop after you have blended it. Best in mind that mint sauce is quite vinegary so be careful and taste as you go.

Soup 3

You can never overcook a mushroom – I am sure that is not strictly true but it is always surprising me that recipes suggest that you can cook a mushroom quickly and they are clearly just plain wrong.

Chop some mushrooms and gently fry in the aforementioned oil. Don’t worry if lots of mushroom liquid comes out, just keep going until if is pretty much gone. 

If you are channelling your inner posh cook, you can add a splash of mushroom ketchup ( and yes I can get that in Petersfield).

And you can put some dried mushrooms in hot water whilst this is happening and if the water becomes gritty you can lift out the mushrooms and add to the stock or if there is no grit add the liquid too.

I add some dried tarragon into the cooking mushrooms – a sprinkle.

Bear in mind that like cabbage, cooked mushrooms are a much smaller business than raw ones.

Brown mushrooms make better soup that white ones – but hey ho, let’s not get too picky.

Right, so you have been cooking the mushrooms for say half an hour, gently.

Peel and chop some potatoes/sweet potatoes quite small so say you have half the quantity of potatoes as you have cooked mushrooms.

Add potatoes, mushrooms, stock, etc to a pan and cook until the potatoes are done.

Blend and taste.

If you have a thick soup you can add some milk or cream and that does make it taste rather luxury-ish.

Soup 3

This is made of food from the excellent free shop in Petersfield which is run by volunteers and offers free food ( unsurprisingly) gleaned from people’s allotments, the local supermarkets who give stuff which is coming to its sell by date.

Chop up some courgettes/nearly marrows/marrows. Also chop up some tomatoes or use tinned tomatoes ( the best you can afford.)

Fry the courgettes and when nicely golden add fresh tomatoes and cook until they are a soft.

Meanwhile chop potatoes or sweet potatoes and cook in stock – stock should cover the potatoes with say an extra two centimetres. 

When pretty much cooked, add in courgettes and fresh or tinned tomatoes.

If you like you can add a dollop of pesto after you have blended, and stir around.

If you are feeling luxury-ish then before you blend – let the soup cool a bit – and add in a whole Boursin cheese.

Soup 4

Take whatever veg you have in the fridge – parsnips, carrot, celery, potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, swede, garlic. ( Not aubergines – never known a good aubergine in a soup) and put them into a pan with stock and a handful of red lentils. Cook, blend and that will work. You can add herbs and seasonings so taste as you go along. Sprinkle with cheese, brush stale bread with oil and cook in a 180 oven for say ten minutes or put under the grill and chop up into croutons. 

I know that was a bit slapdash as a recipe but hey if you have read so far, you will be a soup making expert.

Soup 5

So, at last a chunkier soup.

And here I steal from the River Cafe so I will just give you the link and say follow that and you will be onto a winner.

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/river-cafes-winter-minestrone

However, if you want something that doesn’t require cavalo nero, use a cabbage of any kind.

And here are some other options.

Carrots chopped, celery chopped, onions chopped, leeks chopped, garlic chopped.

Fry carrot and celery gently for quite a long time so that the edges go a bit brown. Add in onions and leeks and garlic. Add in a tin of tomatoes or not as you prefer.

Add in stock and bring to the boil. Add in a handful of pasta – any one will do including broken strips of spaghetti.

Take a tin of beans – any beans will do. Including baked beans but rinse them of their sauce and of course, red kidney beans need a very good rinse.

Add in some chopped chives, some parsley to counteract the garlic, or any herbs you have.

Add in some cooked ham/chicken/whatever you have – or some cooked mushrooms (see above and make sure they are cooked.)

If you want a thicker base, take some of the soup and blend then add back into the soup.