Autumn is fast approaching, making way for soup season.
Break out your cauldron and start soup season with a bang, with a recipe by American chef and historian, Adrian Miller.
Miller shared this very recipe with guests attending the soul food and civil rights webinar, hosted by the US Embassy in Mzansi in commemoration of Black History Month in February.
The soup is said to have even been enjoyed by the first US pres. George Washington.
Make Miller’s historic soup featured in his third published work, The President’s Kitchen Cabinet: The Story of African Americans Who Have Fed Our First Families, from the Washingtons to the Obamas.
READ: Black chefs rise to the top is slow but its finally happening
INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups freshly shucked or frozen peas
1/3 cup julienned leek, white parts only
1/4 cup diced onions
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1/4 cup chopped mint
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
4 mint sprigs for garnish
METHOD
- Prep vegetables: Blanch and cool the peas; reserving 2-3 tablespoons for garnish.
- In a soup pot over medium heat, cook the leeks and onions in the butter until tender, 3-4 minutes.
- Simmer: Add the stock to the pot and simmer for 4 minutes.
- Add the peas and mint and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until the peas are tender.
- Puree: In blender or with an immersion blender, puree the soup until very smooth. Then strain the soup into a bowl through a fine-mesh sieve and discard the solids.
- Serving: If the soup is to be served hot, return the soup to the soup pot and add the cream and lemon juice and reheat gently. If the soup is to be served chilled, cool it quickly by placing the bowl in an ice bath and then add the cream and lemon juice.
- Garnish either version with reserved peas and the mint sprigs.
Source: This recipe has been adapted from Adrian Miller’s book, “The President’s Kitchen Cabinet: The Story of African Americans Who Have Fed Our First Families, from the Washingtons to the Obamas” This is the third in his published works and was released by the University of North Carolina Press in 2017. Miller shares the recipe during a webinar hosted by the US Embassy of South Africa on 28/02/2021 to commemorate Black History Month.
READ: Black chefs rise to the top is slow but its finally happening
