Pea and watercress soup

What’s for lunch? Probably the most common question during lockdown in my house! Yes there are many many other things I find a challenge during lockdown but I can safely say “ what’s for lunch?” tops them! I can deal with breakfast as it is a moveable feast and dinner I really enjoy planning and cooking… however lunch and finding ideas its tough, especially when you can’t just nip to the shops anytime and especially hard when stocks are low. Boys especially teenage boys tend to like beige food, so we stock up on sausage rolls, pork pies, bread, ham and cheese to make sandwiches plain or toasted. I really love soup so I thought I would share this pea and watercress one as it is delicious. 

It's made with frozen peas which most of us have lurking in the freezer. If you can't get watercress you can use baby spinach instead. I shared this recipe with my younger brother who must have misheard me when I was giving him the recipe, his turned out so thick you could stand a wooden spoon up in it! He still to this day is convinced my quantities are not quite right however it always seems to work for me! Siblings! It is delicious on a cold day and perfect for lockdown when we are looking for some thing warming and comforting to eat. A great dish for lunch,filling,healthy, and the kids love it. 




Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil

15g butter

1 large onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

1 large floury potato, cubed

1.5 litres chicken stock

900g frozen peas

100g bag watercress

70g pack finely sliced pancetta or thin rashers smoked streaky bacon

Method

1. Heat the oil and butter in a large pan, add the onion and garlic and cook gently for 5 minutes, until beginning to soften. Add the potato and toss with the onion and garlic, then pour in the stock. Bring to the boil and simmer for 15 minutes, until the potato is tender.
2. Add the frozen peas and simmer for 3 minutes. Add the watercress and stir in until wilted. Remove from the heat, cool for a few minutes then blend with a hand-held blender until smooth. Return to the pan, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and keep warm over a gentle heat.
3. Meanwhile, preheat the grill to high. Grill the pancetta for 2-3 minutes each side, until crisp. Remove and drain on kitchen paper. Break up into pieces.
4. Ladle the soup into bowls and top each with some pancetta pieces and some watercress or flat leaf parsley. 

This recipe is from Delicious magazine.