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courgette, lemon thyme and gem lettuce summer soup

26 July 2015 by Dominic Franks

… influenced by our recent sojourn to Spain, The Viking and I were discussing the merits of cold soup.  The Spanish have their wonderful gazpacho, packed with fruity tomatoes, garlic and peppers it’s a great and easy way to eat a healthy bowl of summer flavours… of course the French have something similar in vichyssoise and the humble leek and potato is one of my favourite cold soups… I adore making cold pea soup – oh there’s something wonderfully sweet about the little pea that makes a cold soup taste so divinely moreish…  but it’s funny how, in the summer months, dishes like soup get neglected.  To be honest, who wants a bowl of steaming hot liquid… but in fact I love soup in the summer.  Cold or hot, it’s a great way to get those essential veg into your diet and if you treat them right, don’t over cook anything and keep it really simple you can easily serve up a glorious bowl of summer…

courgette, lemon thyme and gem lettuce summer soup
if you don’t grow lemon thyme I urge you to try and hunt some down and grow it… even if all you have is a windowsill there’s always room for a little pot of this glorious herb.  It does everything regular thyme does but it has an added bonus of a fresh zesty lemon scent so even in the darkest depths of winter you can add the zing of summer to any dish… it goes really well with many chicken dishes and it perks up all kinds of fish dishes really well without being too overbearing.  It’s in flower at the moment and the little pale lilac flowers are edible and so pretty sprinkled onto your finished dish… the lemon thyme is part of a medley of flavours here but they make their presence known in a subtle under-current of lemon and thyme in this glorious summer soup packed with my favourite ‘allotment’ veg… you can throw anything in here but be careful not to overcrowd the bowl, you want to be able to taste those lovely fresh vegetables…

1 bunch (6 or 7 stems) of spring onions – roughly chopped, keeping much of the green
2 courgette – roughly chopped
8 or 9 stems of purple sprouting broccoli – roughly chopped
a large handful of spinach
100g peas – fresh or frozen
1 gem lettuce – roughly chopped
1 litre good quality vegetable stock
butter and olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon thyme
salt and pepper

in a large pan or skillet on a medium heat, gently melt some butter and a little olive oil, then throw in the onions and courgettes, toss them around and let them sweat for a minute or two

add the peas and broccoli, stir and let them also cook off for another 2 minutes

add the rest of the veg and the fresh lemon thyme, stir and place the lid on.  Turn the heat down to low and let the veg sweat away for roughly 5 mins

add the stock and let the soup gently simmer for 8 minutes… let the soup cool for a couple of minutes before serving

linking up with no croutons required hosted by Lisa from Lisa’s Kitchen and Jaq from Tinned Tomatoes and also linking up with extra veg hosted by Michelle from Utterly Scrummy and Helen from Fuss Free Flavours and of course i’m also linking it to the brilliant eat your greens bloggers challenge hosted by Shaheen over at A2K

eat and of course, enjoy!

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Filed Under: Vegetarian Tagged With: courgette, healthy, healthy eating, lemon thyme, soup, summer, thyme, vegetables

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Comments

  1. Baking Addict says

    26 July 2015 at 9:28 pm

    A great way to get extra veg in! Love the addition of lemon thyme -yum!

  2. Magnolia Verandah says

    27 July 2015 at 3:52 am

    This sounds so lovely the total 'green machine' goodness in one little bowl. Yes I can see how this would be lovely hot or cold.

  3. Choclette Blogger says

    27 July 2015 at 8:17 am

    I'm not really a fan of cold soups – unless they come in smoothie format and then that's a different thing!!! But I do love a good bowl of warm soup and this green one looks fab – come rain or shine. I made something very similar last week and it made a wonderful change to salads.

  4. Karen S Booth says

    27 July 2015 at 11:46 am

    I am a HUGE fan of cold soups and this one is so pretty and colourful! LOVE the addition of lemon thyme too! Karen

  5. Ocean Breezes and Country Sneezes says

    27 July 2015 at 1:16 pm

    Not only does your soup look green and healthy, but It looks delicious!

  6. Mark Willis says

    27 July 2015 at 6:57 pm

    Looks as if that would satisfy the “Five a Day” requirements just in one bowlful. Normally I would say that a cold soup would be entirely appropriate for the end of July, but this year I'm not so sure. Something hearty and warming might be more appealing!

  7. Tricia Buice says

    29 July 2015 at 1:17 pm

    This sounds so interesting and a great way to pack in more veggies 🙂 Very pretty too!

  8. Galina Varese says

    29 July 2015 at 5:41 pm

    What a delightful summer soup, so pretty and vibrantly green.

  9. From Beyond My Kitchen Window says

    30 July 2015 at 12:15 pm

    I also can eat soup year round and this gorgeous green soup looks mouth watering. Lemon thyme is an herb that I like to put in so many dishes. Great recipe!

  10. Shaheen says

    1 August 2015 at 3:51 pm

    Thank you Dom, this looks gorgeous, yummy and light. Thanks for sharing with #EatYourGreens

  11. Lisa Turner says

    3 August 2015 at 4:09 pm

    I too enjoy soups year round and I love your use of seasonal ingredients here. Thank you so much for sharing with NCR. The roundup will be up shortly.

  12. Sarah Trivuncic says

    4 August 2015 at 4:37 pm

    I hadn't tried cold soup until a year or so ago but on a hot summer's day it's the best thing ever! Loving the green version rather than another gazpacho!

  13. Helen @ Fuss Free Flavours says

    19 September 2015 at 5:20 pm

    this is just glorious Dom, and promises to be filling and healthy when you over indulge. Thanks for sending to #ExtraVeg, and sorry it has taken me so long to get around to commenting and sharing.

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About Belleau Kitchen

My name is Dominic, I am a cook, food writer and creative event producer. I write the food blog Belleau Kitchen and also write a monthly recipe column for Lincolnshire Life Magazine and Good Taste Magazine. I also run creative event production company The Persuaders, producing global events for brands since 1997. I am based both in the small village of Belleau in Lincolnshire and the smaller village of London! Read More…

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