Rebecca Seal - Leon Happy Soups

NATURALLY FAST

Quick to cook, without using expensive shortcuts. These soups make great standby suppers and will fix you up fast when youre starving.

COMFORTING

Soothing soups for when you need your next meal to give you a hug.

BRIGHT & FRESH

Seasonal and colourful, these punchy soups are packed with zesty flavours and heaps of goodness.

POSH

Our take on classics like bouillabaisse and lobster bisque soups to share and soups for showing off.

SWEET SOUPS

Soup doesnt have to be savoury. If you need convincing, try our (addictive) chocolate soup.

CRUNCHY TOPS & SWIRLY SWIRLS

Delicious toppings make good soups great, adding texture and layers of flavour.

SIDES

Whats a soup without something scrumptious to dunk in it?

STOCKS & BROTHS

The key ingredient how to make, reduce and store the perfect stocks for all your soups.

Magic potions. Potions full of love, full of power. Oh, and full of flavour. That is how we see soups at LEON. The stirring of the crucible, the sipping of the broth. What better way to show you love yourself? To show your friends and family that you kinda like them too?

Weve had so many kind comments about ourHappy Saladsbook that we wanted to shine a similar spotlight onto our soups. Some of these we serve in our LEON restaurants, but we just dont have the space on our menu to show off our full repertoire. So, here is our best soup work. Weve covered our take on classics, and created some new magic recipes (no newts). They are for one or for many. For Monday lunchtime or for a blazing Saturday night.

Since we started LEON we have been about making it easier for everyone to eat well. We do that by imagining what fast food would be like in heaven and by writing books to share our recipes more widely. Whether you have been eating with us from the beginning or you have just discovered LEON, thank you for being part of the LEON family. We love what we do and we work hard at it. Your support, your ideas, your criticism; it all matters to us and helps us.

Now, go and make some magic.

Wash or peel vegetables before using them in soups, to avoid adding any leftover soil or other nasties to the pan. Rinse herbs and whizz in a salad spinner, or pat dry in a clean tea towel.

A hot soup and a stone-cold topping wont make happy bedfellows. Get the yoghurt, sauce or cheese out of the fridge when you start cooking and allow it to come to room temperature. Dont add crunchy crumbs or croutons until just before you serve, or let guests do it themselves at the table, so they dont have a chance to sink or go soggy.

Jug blenders give smoother results more quickly than stick blenders, but stick blenders will do the job if you take your time. Both require a bit of care stick blenders can cause hot splurts and splashes, especially if the soup is shallow in your pan. Jug blenders should never be filled to the top with hot soup this will cause a vacuum and they can explode. Find out the maximum fill point from the manufacturer and never go over it.

(Rebecca also discovered that, unlike food processors, blenders will happily run without a lid on if you leave the ON button pressed... Nowadays, lesson learned and butternut squash washed out of her hair, she takes the jug off, fills it over the pan and makes sure the lid is on before starting the motor.)

Is there anything more homely than a pan of chicken stock bubbling away the evening after a Sunday roast? We love making our own stock we know exactly whats gone into it, we can tailor it to our favourite flavours and it lasts almost forever in the freezer (especially as ice cubes). Here are our top tips for perfect stock. (For .)

If youre making your own stock, dont add salt. This allows you to control how much you add to a dish when you come to cook later. (Technically, only broth should be seasoned.)

Add herbs that complement whatever you plan to use the stock for, but be sparing you dont want a rosemary or thyme infusion. When cooking, keep stock at a low simmer and skim off the fat, rather than letting it boil hard. A fast boil will cause the fat to emulsify into the water and make the stock cloudy.

Of course, sometimes, there just isnt time to make stock from scratch. But some powdered and cubed stocks or bouillons contain a lot of salt, so if youre using these, choose a good-quality, low-salt, no-salt or low-sodium product, partly for health and partly so you can choose how much to season your soup.