This lettuce soup recipe is quick and simple to make. It is a great light lunch dish or would make a supper starter for a dinner party. As we regularly seem to have a glut of lettuce from June through to August it is ideal for making use of a few of them in an interesting and tasty way. The soup has a very subtle flavour and a beautiful pale green colour.

Link to measurement conversion chart

This recipe will serve 4 people for a light lunch or starter

Ingredients

• 250g lettuce shredded finely, approx. 1 large or 2 small lettuces
• 1 onion chopped
• 1 medium potato diced
• 25g butter
• 400 ml milk
• 400 ml vegetable or chicken stock
• Salt and pepper
• 4 tablespoons double cream optional

You will also need:

• 1 medium saucepan
• A large jug or bowl
• A sieve

Method

1. Melt the butter in a sauce pan add the potato and onion and fry for 5 mins on a low heat, without browning
2. Add the lettuce and stir gently until it has started to wilt
3. Add milk and stock then bring to boil stirring continuously.
4. Reduce the heat and simmer gently for 10-15mins.
5. Liquidise the soup then push through a sieve.
6. Return to the pan, add seasoning to taste then reheat
7. Serve into warm bowls then swirl in a spoonful of double cream if desired.
8. Eat and enjoy

Serving suggestions and variations

• As this soup has a very subtle flavour it is great served with a slice of white bread or plain toast
• Try with garlic bread or parmesan croutons
• Add some thyme, bay or rosemary to the stock when cooking to add more depth of flavour but don’t over do the herbs as the subtle lettuce flavour will be lost
• Don’t want it so rich, leave out the swirl of cream
• Don’t have time to sieve the soup, well eat it as it is.

Acknowledgements

This recipe has been donated to us by our friend Alison, who has the allotment next to my father in law’s. I bumped into Alison, who had notice what a fine crop of lettuces Alan had at the time. We had a discussion about managing a glut of lettuce and she offered her recipe to help use some of Alan’s tasty produce. Thanks for sharing this with us Alison it has certainly helped use some up.

You might like to try some other recipes from our collection;

1. For a tasty side to this soup give our garlic bread a go
2. Why not follow up the soup with an unconventional twist on the classic Salad Nicoise
3. For a delicious dessert Cherry Clafloutis is a simple tasty pud that is also a light touch at the end of the meal.

We hope you have enjoyed this recipe.

Happy eating!

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Blinis with eggs and smoked trout have been our Christmas day breakfast for years. However Simon is not a raw fish lover. In fact he isn't keen on fish at all so we devised this version for his special Christmas or birthday breakfasts. Blini's are a mini buckwheat pancake and are often used as a carrier for appetisers. They are widely available from supermarkets but should be heated through to soften them before use. Any spare blinis can be frozen for later use.

Serves 2 and can easily be increased as packets of blinis usually provide more than is needed for 2 people

Linke to measurement conversion chart

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• 20ml double cream per egg, you can substitute for milk but they aren't as nice!
• 50g grated cheddar cheese
• Salt and pepper
• 6 blinis, 3 per person - available pre made from supermarkets

Method

1. Scramble your eggs per the basic recipe allowing them to be on the runny side, stir in half the cheese.
2. carefully grill the blinis to warm them through or give them a zap in the microwave for 30 seconds
3. Using a teaspon put a spoon of eggs on each blini
4. dot the top of each with a little extra grated cheese
5. place the blinis carefully under the grill and allow the cheese to melt and go golden
6. Serve on a warm plate
7. Eat and enjoy!

Serving suggestions and variations

• Miss out the cheese and serve with a little smoked trout or smoked salmon
• Place a little ham under the eggs
• stir in some chives
• try using cut rounds of unusual breads, something nutty works well

Acknowledgements

I first came across smoked salmon topped blinis from a Delia Smith recipe which involved making the blinis as well and was a whole heap of effort to go to. We didn't revisit Delia's recipe until we came across blinis in the supermarket. We added blini's to the list of things we were never going to try making again and started experimenting with what you can top them with. Let us know what else you try them with!

You may also like to try one of the following;

• Fancy a tasty snack and have a bag of frozen peas to hand, have a go at Easy Pea-sy soup.
• After something more substantial and unusual then try runner bean spaghetti bolognaise, a great way to 5 a day.
• There always a time for cake so whip up this Victoria Sandwich cake, or one of the alternatives, and have a slice for me!

We hope you liked this recipe

Eat and enjoy!

This page is an index of all the recipes for starters, light bites and snacks listed on Eco-Marketplace. It is divided into the following sections

• Sandwiches and solo snacks
• Soups
• Sharing starters and snacks

Each picture is a link to the corresponding recipe, so scroll through and find something tasty today. Eat and enjoy!

Sandwiches and solo snacks

• Asparagus galette
• Basic omelette
• Boiled agg and soldiers
• Egg and mayo open sandwich
• Eggs Basevi
• Eggs benedict
• Eggs florentine
• Eggs royale
• Eggy Scrumble
• Fried egg sandwich
• Onion Rarebit
• Pickled eggs
• Poached egg on English muffins
• Quesadilla
• Scrambled eggs on toast

Soups

• Asparagus soup
• Carrot soup
• French onion soup
• Lentil and frankfurter soup
• Lettuce Soup
• Easy Peasy Pea soup
• Slow cooked split pea, tomato and bacon soup

Sharing starters and snacks

• Camembert with asparagus dippers
• Blinis with smoked trout and scrambled eggs
• Blinis with eggy scrumble
• Smoked salmon and scrambled egg
• Tony's prawny eggs

We hope you have enjoyed our recipes. Check back regularly for new additions.

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A fried egg sandwich is a great way to get a satisfying snack or breakfast in minutes. I add it to our collection because it is something most people only think about when near a burger van at a football or rugby match. In fact, done properly at home it is a great thing to have for breakfast or lunch when you are in a hurry but want something hot and satisfying. Great for student everywhere!

Serves 1

Ingredients

• 1egg
• 2 slices of bread, day old is actually better than really fresh
• Tomato ketchup or tomato chutney, or whatever suits your taste, see serving suggestions below.

You will also need

• 1 frying pan and a serviette or napkin

Method

1. Get your bread ready, butter it if you must but the egg will melt the butter and the bread will go greasy
2. Spread a generous portion of ketchup or chutney onto 1 slice
3. Cook the egg to your taste and turn it, this is not a sunny side up affair
4. Carefully arrange the egg on top of the ketchup/chutney and cover with the remaining piece of bread
5. Tuck the serviette/napkin under your chin and take a bite from your sandwich, now you know why you need the serviette!
6. Eat and enjoy

Serving suggestions and variations

• If you don’t like a drippy egg either pop the yolk when you turn it or reduce the heat and allow the egg to cook for a bit longer.
• If you want to be indulgent add a slice of ham or chees to your sandwich
• Day old bread soaks up the drippy yolk better than fresh, you could also slightly toast the bread instead.
• If you really don’t do ketchup then a little ground pepper is a must
• Keen to try something else as a condiment then have a go at Runner bean chutney.
• Try alternative breads too, Rye and GI breads add a nutty tasty to the experience.
• A friend of ours swears by sweet chilli sauce instead of ketchup, I know others love brown sauce. Try them all and others until youy find the one that works best for you.

Acknowledgements

Who knows who invented the fried egg sandwich. It’s just something we were brought up with and with all the fancy snacks available off the shelf these days it’s something that is fading from memory. Just like the fish finger sandwich!

Fancy something else from our collection then why not try one of the following;

1. another good alternative for a quick snack that gets forgotten have a go at an omelette,
2. feeling more indulgent and hungrier then a burger with the lot is for you,
3. in need of some comfort food then this sticky toffee pudding will do the trick.

Happy eating!