Saturday 20 February 2010

Pea Noodle Soup

This post is dedicated to my friend Kat, who has found herself in a flat in Barcelona without an oven for five months. While despairing to me of her situation, I suggested that she make soup. Delicious, filling, lasts you for ages, and best of all: no oven.

Oh so simple. Oh so comforting.

I love Jamie Oliver. I really do. I think he might be one of my favourite chefs, ever. So perhaps it's only fitting that my first post on here is based on one of his recipes (Altamura Pea Soup, from Jamie's Italy). It was my first time trying the recipe, and– given that I am permanently incapable of following directions exactly– it turned out quite well. I didn't put in as much onion in as JO suggests, mostly because I hate chopping onions, and missing out a half an onion doesn't negatively impact the flavour. In addition to this I threw in a few more handfuls of peas. Next time I'd probably put in a bit more stock than I did, just to give it a bit more broth.

I'm posting the recipe with the changes I made, mainly with more peas and less onions, but if you want to see the original, click the link above to go to Jamie's website.

pea noodle soup


PEA NOODLE SOUP (FOR KAT)

2 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1-1 1/2 onions, peeled and finely chopped
1 litre chicken stock
 5 handfuls of frozen peas
250 g dried spaghetti, broken into short lengths
salt and pepper
fresh rosemary
small handful of parsely, chopped

1. Pour 2 tbsp olive oil into a frying pan, add the chopped onions, and fry for 10 mins.
2. Stir in the chicken stock and peas, bring to the boil and let simmer for 10 mins, while you make your pasta. Bring a pot of salted water to the boil, and add the broken up pieces of spaghetti (if you wanted you could a smaller pasta like fusilli, but I personally prefer spaghetti). Cook the pasta for 4 minutes, or about half the time it says on the packet. Drain.
3. When the pasta is half cooked and drained, add it to the soup and allow it to finish cooking. Add a little bit of rosemary (if using a sprig, remove before serving). When the pasta has finished cooking, season the soup with salt and pepper to taste. Before serving, drizzle the rest of the olive oil and a little bit of parsely over the soup.

3 comments:

  1. Sophie, I love you and am eternally grateful that you have dedicated this post to me. Unfortunately I really, really dislike peas. Almost as much as bananas... BUT because I'm such an amazing friend (and have had good experiences with pea soup in the past) I will try this out and let you know my feelings. Also, Vampire Weekend are playing in Barca next Saturday and I'm going. How jealous are you?!


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  2. Did I know this about you? I could've sworn I did not. Oh well, you should try anyway, it IS really good.
    I'm also eternally jealous about your Vampire Weekend adventures. A full account and lots of pictures please.

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  3. I don't know, did you ever try and feed me peas? I'm fairly sure I would have made my feelings known... I did make pea soup once though when I was in air scouts (long story!) and it was surprisingly good so I promise to give this one a go when I can afford/justify buying the ingredients :)

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