Soups you, Sir

 As we walked through one of the two main roads bisecting the valley, we realised that here at the bottom of the valley it had its own weather system. It was a little being at the bottom of the Mariana Trench, you're in your own world away from the surrounding towns and villages at the top of and over the hill where temperatures showed there were vestiges of summer hanging on. 

We walked in the direction of the curry house as a woman in an aged leather jacket and too tight jeans proceeded to stumble backwards showing a full moon to all the townsfolk as she collapsed with her dignity bleeding onto the pavement. 

In the curry house we met the rest of the team. Among them were two members of an amiable family containing three talented cricketers and all are friendly people who tell me they love the soup recipes I put on this blog. That means today's post is dedicated to them and it features a Swiss Chard Soup. 

The lead singer of the Smiths, whose album Meat is Murder, was on the player as I prepped the soup would approve of this dish as it is a vegetarian soup. The Smiths did not bother too much with Politics on their records but the title track, complete with surprisingly tuneful abattoir noises, has an impact in a way that was ahead of its time when the album was released in 1985.

So the ingredients of this soup, they are:

Five large Swiss Chard Leaves and their stems, that I plucked from my garden, and sliced and diced. 

One White Onion, peeled, topped and tailed and then diced. 

Two cloves of Garlic mashed up. 

A teaspoon of Nutmeg.

A teaspoon of British Coriander Leaf.

A teaspoon of Black Pepper. 

The juice of a Lemon.

Fifty grams of Fresh Parsley from my garden. 

Fifty grams of Fresh Mind from my garden. 

Half a pint of Vegetable Stock. 

Fifty grams of Chive and Onion Cheddar. 

The method for making this soup is simple. First fry the Onion and Garlic in a Le Cresceut or deep non stick saucepan with some Sunflower Oil for about ten minutes. Then add all the other ingredients except the stock and the cheese and stir together while warming through until the Swiss Chard has shrunk to about half its size.

After that add the Vegetable Stock and simmer for around twenty minutes. 

When that's done blend and return to the Le Cresceut. Add the Chive and Onion and warm through before serving. 

This soup has a strange dark rusted colour to it that is much like the leaves on the trees at this time of year. The Mint gives it a freshness that offsets the earthy taste of the Chard. It's a soup that's flavoursome and offers lots of health benefits.