food: three soups to choose from

If soups are needed during particular time of the year it's for January and February, when it's dark and chilly outside. Kind of comfort food but also something you're not always in the mood for, soups can be deliciously healthy and nutritious. In this post you have three different soups where asparagus, sweet potatoes and white fish is used to make simple soups in few minutes. To read the recipes push the read more button down below.

Asparagus soup

with tarragon cream

 Fish soup with coconut milk and rice noodles

Sweet potato soup with bacon

Photos: Gunnar Sverrisson for Home and Delicious

                                                                

Asparagus soup

with tarragon cream

20 g butter

1 onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, finely minced

2 large potatoes, peeled and diced

1/2 l chicken stock

400 g fresh asparagus or canned

salt and black pepper

tarragon cream:

2 tablespoons fresh chopped tarragon, may be other herbs

1 dl sour cream

½ tsp grated lemon rind

2 tbsp whipped cream

Start by preparing the cream but notice that you can use estragon or marjoram instead, even chives.You can also, simply put, use plain whipped cream, it works well! Finely chop the tarragon. Stir together sour cream and whipped cream, add tarragon and grated lemon rind. Stir well. Cool until the soup is served.

Melt butter on medium heat in a pot. Soften onion and garlic in the butter. Add potatoes. Pour broth into the pot. Bring to the boil and cook for 5 minutes. Cut asparagus into bitesize pieces. Add to the soup and cook for another 8-10 minutes or until the asparagus is soft. Taste with salt and pepper. Purée the soup and it will thicken and be nice and smooth. Serve with the tarragon cream.

  

 Fish soup with coconut milk and rice noodles

1 tbsp oil

600 ml coconut milk

250 ml chicken stock

60 ml fish sauce

2 tbs brown sugar

600 g white fish of your choice, cut into 3 cm pieces

handful of green lettuce or arugula

juice from half a lemon

cooked rice noodles, amount of your own choice

fresh coriander to garnish

chutney:

4 cm fresh ginger

2 garlic cloves

1 fresh green chilli

2 tbsp fresh coriander / cilantro

1 tsp cumin

Start by boiling the noodles. Place all the ingredients for the chutney in a food processor and mix well. You can reduce the amount of the chilli due to your choice. Heat the oil on medium high in a pot. Put the chutney in, stirring well for 2 minutes.

Pour the coconut milk and stock in, sugar and fish sauce and simmer for 5 minutes. Place the fish pieces and salad in and simmer till the fish is cooked through, about 3-5 minutes. Taste with more lemon juice. Place the cooked noodles in a bowl and pour the soup over. Garnish with some coriander.

Sweet potato soup with bacon

3 medium, sweet potatoes, peeled and diced

4 tbsp olive oil

10 slices bacon, cut into pieces

2 fresh garlic cloves, minced

2 tsp paprika

1 onion, finely chopped

1 l chicken stock

juice from half a lemon

salt and black pepper

sour cream

crispy bacon for decoration

Preheat oven to 200 degrees.  Drizzle the potatoes with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes or until they are tender. Fry the bacon in a pan until fairly crisp. Soften onion and garlic in 2 tablespoons of oil in a good pot, add the bacon and sprinkle with the paprika. Stir well together. Pour the broth, stir and bring to the boil. Put the tender sweet potatoes in the soup and boil for 10 minutes. Purée the soup. Taste with salt, pepper and lemon juice. Serve with sour cream and a little bit of bacon.