Leftovers

Soupe Menerboise leftover from visitors.  Now known as Ceridwen's soup. So delicious that although I'm still full from having it for a late lunch I might just have to finish it off for dinner.  VERY moreish.  This batch made from a haul of fresh produce from the RNLI Flower show at the weekend, garnished with heritage tomatoes.  Mmmmmm ...

The link Ceridwen offered in a previous blip has mysteriously stopped working, luckily I'd printed it out when the link was working.  So here is Elizabeth David's original recipe.  I doubt she'd mind us sharing.

Soupe Menerboise
1/2 lb courgettes/zucchini
1lb tomatoes
2 onions
several cloves of garlic
a handful of shelled broad beans [ or a ton if you like them as much as I do]
fresh basil
1+1/2 ozs small pasta or broken-up spaghetti  
olive oil
2 yolks of eggs
Parmesan cheese

In an earthenware casserole warm a coffee-cupful of olive oil.  into this put the sliced onions and let them melt but not fry.  Add the little marrows, unpeeled and cut into squares (it is best to prepare them an hour before cooking, salt them lightly, and leave them in a colander so that some of the water drains from them).  Let them melt in the oil slowly for 10 minutes before adding all but two of the tomatoes, roughly chopped.  When these have softened put in the potatoes cut into small squares and pour about 2 pints of hot water over the whole mixture.  simmer gently for 10 minutes until the potatoes are nearly cooked; then add the broad beans, the pasta and seasoning of salt and pepper.

In the meantime grill the remaining tomatoes, remove their skins; in a mortar pound 3 cloves of garlic, then the tomatoes, and a small bunch of basil.  Add the yolks of the eggs, so that you have a sauce somewhat resembling a thin mayonnaise.  The pasta in the soup being cooked, stir a ladleful of the soup into the sauce, then another.  Return the mixture to the pan, and let it heat gently, stirring all the time to prevent the egg curdling.  At the last minute stir in two large spoonfuls of grated Parmesan these.

A substantial soup for four to six people.
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I like the old fashioned language and the sense that the ingredients were so exotic not so many years ago.