the mock-turtle’s lament

Posted on | June 10, 2009 | No Comments

from alice in wonderland ~~~~ lewis carroll

Beautiful Soup, so rich and green,
Waiting in a hot tureen!
Who for such dainties would not stoop?
Soup of the evening, beautiful Soup!
Beau–ootiful Soo–oop!
Beau–ootiful Soo–oop!
Soo–oop of the e–e–evening,
Beautiful, beautiful soup.

Beautiful Soup!
Who cares for fish,
Game, or any other dish?
Who would not give all else for two
Pennyworth only of beautiful Soup?
Beau–ootiful Soo–oop!
Beau–ootiful Soo–oop!
Soo–oop of the e–e–evening,
Beautiful, beauti–FUL–SOUP!

i have been making insane amounts of soup lately.
the key with good soup is to start with good stock.
i like to make chicken stock with chicken frames, onion, carrot, celery, bay leaves, salt, pepper, wine and handfuls of fresh herbs.
i added handfuls of mizuna to my most recent stock, for some added green peppery goodness.

we are still inundated with silverbeet and zucchinis, so last night’s soup utilised both.

saute an onion and some garlic and a couple of bay leaves, in olive oil.
roughly chop 4 cups of silverbeet and a huge zucchini, say 900g, and add to pot.
de-glaze with a splash of white wine.
add a handful or two of fresh herbs….i had parsley, basil, oregano, chives, sage and rosemary.
add 4 cups of chicken stock, cover with a tight lid and simmer until zucchini is soft.
now, blend until it is a lovely green puree, adding more stock if you prefer a thinner soup.
i added a cup and a half of fresh yoghurt and blended some more, but a little cream would be nice instead.
i like a good pinch of freshly grated nutmeg with silverbeet, but you might prefer to leave it out.
taste and add sea salt and freshly ground pepper.
top with some chopped scallions and serve with big rustic croutons.

and here is my soup in my new tureen, which made me instantly think of the mock-turtle: