Entertain at home: Host a souperb soup evening

Broccoli & cauliflower soup

You’ll need: 1 onion; 1 tsp olive oil; ½ medium broccoli, chopped; ½ medium cauliflower, chopped; 1-litre vegetable stock; 1 garlic clove, finely chopped; 1 tbsp Dijon mustard; Maldon Sea salt and ground black pepper; 1 tsp thyme, fresh or dried; 1 Tbsp basil, fresh or dried; 175ml cream; shallots (optional); feta cheese (optional).

How to:

Chop the onion, place it in a big pan with the olive oil and cook on low-medium heat for three minutes. Add the chopped garlic and cook for another minute.

Roughly chop the broccoli and cauliflower. (Save a few broccoli florets for garnishing.)

Place the broccoli and cauliflower into the pan, add the stock and simmer for 15 minutes.

Turn off the heat and add the cream. Then add thyme, basil, mustard and salt and pepper (according to your taste) and stir well to incorporate the flavours

Blend with a hand blender.

Ladle into soup bowls and garnish with small florets of steamed broccoli and finely chopped shallots or crumble feta cheese on top for a creamy finish.

Curry tomato soup

You’ll need: 450g can diced tomatoes, drained and juice reserved; ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil; salt and black pepper to taste; 2 Tbsp butter; 1 stalk celery, diced; 1 small carrot, diced; 1 onion, diced; 2 cloves garlic, minced; 1 cup vegetable stock; ½ tsp curry powder; 1 teaspoon lime juice; Handful of pumpkin seeds, toasted; sour cream.

How to:

Preheat oven to 220°C. Spread the drained tomatoes on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Roast until the tomatoes start to brown and shrink slightly about 20 minutes.

Heat butter over medium-low heat in a large saucepan. Stir in the celery, carrot, onion and garlic and cook until softened, about 10 minutes.

Mix in the roasted tomatoes, reserved tomato juice and the stock and simmer until vegetables are very tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

Place pumpkin seeds in a small pan and toast in the oven (10 minutes) when roasting the tomatoes.

Stir in the curry powder and lime juice, then remove from heat and puree with a hand blender until smooth.

Serve with a swirl of sour cream, a sprinkling of toasted pumpkin seeds and a slice of fresh baguette.

Thai inspired pumpkin soup

You’ll need: 1 medium-sized pumpkin; 1 large onion, roughly chopped; 2 Tbsp Thai red curry paste; 2 Tbsp lemongrass; 1-litre vegetable stock; 400ml coconut cream.

How to:

Pre-heat oven to 180°C. Cut pumpkin in half and place on a baking tray in the oven for 30 minutes or until soft

Add a little oil to a large pot chopped and toss in the chopped onion and the curry paste and sauté on medium-high heat until onion softens.

Add the lemongrass, stock and coconut cream.

When ready, scoop the cooked pumpkin off the skin and add to the pot, simmering for 15 minutes.

Turn off the heat allowing the soup to cool. Season with kosher salt and ground black pepper.

Blend, using a stick blender, until smooth and creamy and reheat briefly before serving.

* Recipes & images by Capsicum Culinary Studio.