Ingredients:
A colander full of freshly emptied pea pods, rinsed
1 onion or a handful of spring onions, chopped
A generous handful of fresh mint
Light vegetable stock
Seasoning: a little salt, a little pepper, a little sugar, a little lemon juice
To garnish: more chopped spring onions and chopped fresh herbs of your choice
Optional: a little yoghurt or cream (use vegan varieties for vegan soup!)
In a large saucepan, gently fry the chopped onion or
spring onions in a little olive oil for about 3 minutes. Put the pea
pods and mint into the pan – discard any very woody stems but there’s no
need to chop everything up, this soup will be going into the food
processor later on. Add enough light vegetable stock to allow the pea
pods to float about happily. Bring to the boil, then turn to a low heat,
cover and simmer for 25 minutes. Check the water level and top up if
you need to.
Allow the mixture to cool a little and then transfer to a food processor
or liquidizer and whizz until smooth. Pea pods can be stringy, so be
prepared to run the machine for several minutes and taste as you go so
that you can be sure that the consistency is right for you. If all else
fails and the consistency is still a bit too fibrous you can put the
soup through a sieve.
Return the soup to the pan, check the consistency and thin it down with a
little more stock if you like. Check the taste and adjust it to suit
your own preference using salt, pepper, sugar or lemon juice. This soup
can be served warm or chilled. Top with finely chopped spring onions and
fresh herbs, or a swirl of cream or yoghurt.
