Instant Pot Easy Vegetable Soup Recipe

This is a soup recipe that I adapt, and mostly cook in a large pan, but now the electric pressure cooker has made an appearance in my kitchen, the very least it can do is to somehow pay for it's keep.  I store it away in a cupboard - the pressure cooker that is - I had to empty my cupboard of baking tins and move them to a cupboard which is already heaving with baking paraphernalia, there is absolutely no room on my work surface for any more gadgets.

Anyway back to the soup, it's ridiculously easy to make and can be bulked out with borlotti beans and small pieces of broken spaghetti to give a more filling version of a family friendly minestrone.

Chopped parsley added to the soup after cooking lifts the flavours, and a grating of Parmesan cheese is perfect.

Instant Pot Leek and Potato Soup

A delicious bowl of comforting home made soup with a thick slab of bread and butter takes some beating. Leek and potato soup is quick and simple to make and any that isn't eaten can be frozen in a strong freezer bag.

I made mine in the Instant Pot (electric pressure cooker) and once the soup had cooled down I whizzed it in the blender.  I purchased the pressure cooker just before last Christmas and as with all gadgets it's a bit of a learning curve, but so far so good!

Carrot and Leek Soup - Recipe

Carrot and Leek Soup

After all the eating over Christmas a bowl of freshly made soup is perfect.

Lets be honest some gadgets we purchase aren't going to get used as much as we would like but hubby and I love this soup maker.  From thinking about making soup to serving up takes all of 30 minutes and my new kitchen toy is definitely one of the best gadgets I have in my kitchen.

Hubby needs to lose some weight, I don't believe in diets, and making bowls of warm, comforting soup will be a great way to eat loads of veg, it will be filling and low in calories too.

I love this soup and if you are fed up with the usual Carrot and Coriander then why not give this recipe a try.

Conventional Recipe but can be made in a soup maker
450g leeks
450g carrots
1 medium onion
25g vegetable oil
1.5 litres stock
Seasoning

Clean and wash the leeks, chop, place them into a colander and wash under running  Peel the carrots and cut them into smallish pieces, chop the onion.

Add the oil to a large saucepan, add the vegetables. Stir, cover and ‘sweat’ them for 10 minutes on a low heat, shake the pan from time to time.

Pour in the stock, add seasoning, bring to a simmer, cover and simmer gently for 10 minutes until the carrot is tender.  Liquidise the soup.

Any leftover soup can be frozen either in zip lock bags or by filling the holes in a silicone muffin tray with soup, freezing and then removing the muffin size portions of soup, as a rule of thumb a couple of these make one serving.  If you have an induction hob it's easy to defrost the portions in a pan on a low heat or defrost in the microwave.

Frozen portions of soup

More recipes:
Spicy Tomato and Red Pepper Soup
Mushroom Soup
Cauliflower Cheese Soup

Mushroom Soup - Recipe

Mushroom soup garnished with finely chopped fresh parsley

Making soup from just a few ingredients is a very cost effective way to feed ourselves and our families during the winter months, although I am more than happy to eat soup all year round.  I find a bowl of soup at lunchtime is filling and keeps me going until dinner.  Another reason I like to eat soup - it helps me to keep my weight at a sensible level so that I don't have to diet.  The recipe serves 4 people and works out at approximately 25p a bowl.

The soup can be frozen in soup bags after cooling or a more cost effective way is to pour the soup into a muffin tin and place in the freezer.  After the portions are frozen remove the muffin tin from the freezer and let them start to defrost around the edges. Remove the soup portions and either wrap them individually in cling wrap or thaw the portions at room temperature.

Okay better get started with the soup 

You will need:
50g diced onion
50g diced celery
50g diced leek
50g butter
1tbsp olive oil
50g plain flour
1 litre hot chicken stock
200g white mushrooms chopped
100ml semi-skimmed milk
Parsley, finely chopped to garnish

Method:
1. Melt the butter and oil in a large pan. add the diced onion, celery and leeks.  Cook gently to soften without colouring.
2. Add the flour to the pan and cook gently.  Gradually add the hot stock whilst continuously stirring, bring to the boil to thicken.
3. Add the chopped mushrooms, season.
4. Simmer for 45 minutes.
5. Cool the soup.
6. Liquidise.
7. Pour the liquidised soup through a strainer into a clean pan.
8. Add the milk and season if necessary.


I thought I'd share a few snapshots of the 'new kitchen'.  I'm really pleased with it and will put a few posts on the blog sharing my thoughts about using a Steam Combination Oven, induction hob and warming drawer.

A Nigel Slater Recipe - A Soup of Cauliflower and Cheese

Cauliflower Cheese Soup is a firm favourite, it's filling and comforting, not the best choice for those who may be on a diet, but for the rest of us a luxurious soup.

Grain mustard is stirred through the pureed soup along with a pot of creme fraiche - Nigel likens this soup to Welsh rarebit which I'll go along with....I made some mixed grain bread and served grilled cheese on toast to go alongside.

The recipe can be taken to dinner party level by using Gruyère Cheese. For an everyday soup a mature Cheddar cheese is fine, this was my cheese of choice because I had a slab in the fridge shouting to be used.

Taken from Tender Volume I -  Nigel Slater A cook and his Vegetable Patch - page 189.

I am entering my soup into Dish of the Month challenge hosted by Janice at Farmers Girl Kitchen and Sue at A Little Bit of Heaven on a Plate.

For more soup postings:
Celery, Leek & Stilton
Cauliflower Cheese Soup with Parmesan Wafers
Broccoli & Stilton Soup with Stilton Croutons
Spicy Tomato and Red Pepper Soup

CURRIED PARSNIP & APPLE SOUP WITH PARSNIP CRISPS ALSO CREAM OF CELERY SOUP

The first soup comes from Delia's Winter Collection and must be one of the best soups I have ever eaten.

The recipe can be found here on Delia's website.

The flavour combinations are truly wonderful, and if you are a curry fan, then this soup must surely go on your 'to do list' of recipes.

Hopefully, you will have spices that haven't been bought ready ground. It really is worthwhile roasting your own spices when you need them. The aroma from the spices when you are crushing them in the pestle and mortar is heaven.

I always try to remember not to liquidize soups too much, because I prefer my soups to have some texture to them.

The parsnip crisps for the garnish are very easy to make, simply slice the parsnips very thinly, fry in hot fat for a few minutes and then, as if by magic, they start to curl and twist into wonderful shapes.


The Cream of Celery soup, comes under the heading of luxury soups in Delia's Frugal Food.

I had some celery and leeks that were starting to look sorry for themselves, suddenly these tired looking vegetables transformed themselves into a delicious soup.

I bought my celery seeds from the health store, unfortunately, these aren't very easy to find. You can buy them from the Seasoned Pioneers website though.

Here is the slightly adapted recipe.

CREAM OF CELERY SOUP
DELIA'S FRUGAL FOOD
ISBN 9780340918562 - Page 23

350g sticks celery trimmed (save the leaves), 25g butter, 110g peeled potatoes cut into chunks, 2 sliced and washed medium leeks (white parts only, but I used all of the leek), 570ml chicken stock, 275ml semi-skimmed milk, ¼ teaspoon celery seeds, 2 tablespoons cream, seasoning.

1. Melt the butter in a large pan over a low heat.
2. Chop the celery and add it to the pan, together with the potatoes and drained leeks. Then stir to coat the vegetables with butter, cover very gently for about 15 minutes, shaking the pan from time to time to prevent the vegetables from sticking.
3. Pour in the stock and milk, sprinkle in the celery seeds and some salt. Bring to simmering point over a very low heat (watching it doesn't boil over), cover and simmer for 20-25 minutes, or until the vegetables are absolutely tender.
4. Liquidize the soup until it's your preferred consistency. Return the puree to the pan and add the cream.
5. Bring back to the boil, taste and season.
6. Just before serving, chop up the reserved celery leaves and use these to garnish the soup.

MARINATED RED ONION, SPINACH AND PINE NUT SALAD

Although at this time of the year we turn our thoughts to comfort food, I try to eat some lighter meals midweek. Christmas is only a few weeks away and I start to think of all of those extra calories eaten over such a short time. If the pounds pile on now in the run up to Christmas, then the problem becomes greater over the festive period.

If I eat sensibly then I don't have any weight issues, but unfortunately, that isn't the case with my husband, who just has to look at food and seems to be able to put on the pounds!

After cooking Pasta with Spinach and Cherry Tomatoes I had lots of spinach left and so this salad was made and I served it with a savoury tart.


OLIVE MAGAZINE - August 2007

Serves: 4

Marinating the onions gives them a lovely sweet and sour flavour and takes away some of the rawness.

1 red onion (halved and sliced), 1 tbsp caster sugar, 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar, 100g young spinach, 4 tbsp toasted pine nuts, olive oil, 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, 150ml natural yoghurt .

1. Put the red onion in a bowl and toss with the sugar and vinegar. Leave for 10-15 minutes to soften. Put the spinach in a large serving dish. Drain the onions then scatter over the spinach with the pine nuts.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil and add the cumin seeds. When they start to pop, take off the heat and stir into the yoghurt. Drizzle over the salad and serve.

FRESH TOMATO SOUP WITH BASIL

A wonderful fresh soup to make in the summer when tomatoes are at their very best.

DELIA SMITH'S COMPLETE ILLUSTRATED COOKERY COURSE - A NEW EDITION FOR THE 1990s.

ISBN780563214540

FRESH TOMATO SOUP WITH BASIL - PAGE 73.

Serves: 4 people - or 2 people with second helpings.

Skill Level: Easy

Taste Test: Excellent - This must be the best fresh tomato soup ever!!

TIP 1: Use ripe tomatoes (because they’re sweeter). If you use under ripe tomatoes the soup will be very pale in colour and the tomato taste won’t come through very well.

TIP 2: For the stock, use half a vegetable stock cube or preferably vegetable bouillon powder (you can buy this in most supermarkets or health food shops - and this will last for ages).

Kitchen Equipment Used:A Meyer stainless steel saucepan – I like this because it’s a good conductor of heat, easy to clean and stylish.