Ingredients
Method
- Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over low heat. Add cubed zucchini and crushed garlic. Cover and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Pour in the stock. Add basil stalks, parmesan rind (if using), salt, and black pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 8 minutes.
- Add the peas and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Remove from heat and discard the basil stalks and parmesan rind. Stir in fresh basil leaves and grated parmesan. Blend with an immersion blender until smooth.
- Adjust seasoning to taste, then ladle into bowls. Serve topped with extra grated parmesan and black pepper.
Nutrition
Notes
Courgettes – or as they are called here in Australia and most of the world, zucchini. The word is one of those that I switch back to my English roots sometimes, confusing those around me. You need approx. 5-6 courgettes, depending on their size.
Garlic – I haven’t use onion in this soup recipe, so garlic adds to the base flavour. It is cooked slowly with the courgettes until sweet and mellow.
Olive oil – just a regular light-flavoured olive oil.
Peas – frozen peas, or if you have lots of fresh peas in your garden, use these 🙂
Basil – I recommend using fresh basil here rather than dried basil as you will get a completely different flavoured soup. The stalks are simmered with the stock to add flavour, and the leaves are blended in to the soup. Don’t have basil? Try these basil substitutes.
Parmesan – you can leave out the Parmesan cheese to make this soup suitable for vegans or dairy free diets. (If wanting to make it vegetarian, check your Parmesan is suitable for vegetarians.)
Parmesan rind – cooking the soup with the parmesan rind adds so much flavour! Leave out if wanting to make this soup vegan, adding a little more salt to the finished soup to taste..
Stock – I often make this soup with vegetable stock or homemade vegetable stock, but you can use chicken stock if you prefer.
Tips
- Don’t overcook the soup after adding the peas, otherwise they will lose their beautiful bright green colour… soup colour.
- Don’t forget to take the parmesan rind and basil stalks out of the soup before blending!
- Using a blender – if you use a blender to blitz the soup, allow the soup to cool for a few minutes before blending, fill to ⅓ – ½ full, and take the centre piece out of the lid, to help prevent it from exploding.