Broad Bean and Pea Soup

I picked up a couple of bags of reduced broad beans on Monday, intending to use them for dinner tonight. We ate some last night and they were definitely past their best so, not wanting to throw them away, I started to think of other things to do with them. Initially, I thought I’d make them into pesto but, at the last minute, changed my mind and turned them into soup.

I thought this would be fairly quick to make but it ended up taking quite a while, it was worth it though because the end result was delicious with all the flavour of broad beans (and peas) without the floury texture. The Gruyere croutons were of course really good too.

Broad Bean and Pea Soup
Serves Two

1 large onion, chopped
2 sticks celery, chopped
2 cloves garlic, sliced
2 sprigs thyme
500g broad beans, removed from the pods and double podded
500g peas, shelled
Salt and pepper
1 litre vegetable stock
2 tablespoons yoghurt
Baguette, sliced
Grated Gruyere

Start by softening the onion, celery and garlic in some olive oil with the thyme. Add the beans and peas, season and add the vegetable stock. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for about 45 minutes. Just before the end of the cooking time, top the baguette slices with the grated cheese and grill until the cheese has melted.

Remove the soup from the heat and discard the thyme sprigs. Blend until smooth, stir in the yoghurt, top with the cheese slices and serve.