Savoury,  Soup

Courgette and goat cheese soup and raucous men

Neither Luc nor I are fans of shopping, especially shopping together. You know those couples you see casually and contentedly wandering around shops hand in hand? Well that will never be us. Lockdown suited very well from that point of view; one of us went shopping (usually Luc as he thinks I’m an irrational, inefficient and irresponsible shopper), and the rest was bought online.

But we needed new patio furniture and decided to brave the garden centre. I was very happy to try out the swing sets and suspended deck chairs, which I discovered weren’t properly anchored, while Luc frantically looked around for someone to help us. We’d been told that ‘Emilie’ was the salesperson to look for, but she was proving difficult to pin down. Problem solved: Luc planted himself in the middle of the expansive furniture section and absolutely boomed ‘E-M-I-L-I-E!’. After that it was plain sailing; eight dining chairs and two deckchairs were chosen, paid for, and loaded in under 10 minutes, and I hobbled out only slightly bruised.

An old English wreck

Because I’m old and broken (see above), I visit my physiotherapist twice a week. He loves to sing as he works, and last week launched into a charmingly boisterous rendition of an old French song about a once — but no longer — glorious, unseaworthy, abandoned ship: ‘Quand je pense à la vielle anglaise…’ (when I think of the old English woman…) Bursting into laughter I said ‘I’m so happy to have inspired you!’ Since then, strangely enough, he has refrained from refrains.

This is a lovely, quick and easy soup for Spring.

Recipe for courgette and goat cheese soup (serves 6)

  • 45g butter
  • 1 onion, peeled and sliced
  • 2 shallots, peeled and sliced
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 200g leeks, washed and chopped
  • 450g courgettes, washed and cut into rounds
  • 1 large potatoes, peeled and sliced
  • 1l chicken stock (or vegetable if you prefer)
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 150g soft goat’s cheese

Melt the butter in a large saucepan over a medium heat, adding the onions, shallots and garlic, and frying for about five minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Next add the leeks, courgettes and potato coating in the butter and cook for a few minutes longer. Add the stock and seasoning and simmer for about 20 minutes, or until the vegetables are soft. Finally, add the goat’s cheese and blend the soup until smooth.

5 Comments

  • Lucie

    I am laughing so much at this! I can imagine him doing it – just wish I’d been there! Soup looks great, hope the garden furniture is too.

  • KJ

    I’m with Luc on this one. I do not like shopping and if I want to buy something I prefer the salesperson is not in hiding. If he/she is, then bellowing like a wounded water buffalo is a very effective means of drawing the missing salesperson out in the open. It is a very useful tool in Germany, where the natives will do anything to avoid a fuss in public. My partner is still coming to grasp with the concept of ‘the squeaky wheel gets the grease.’ But, he’s learning.

      • KJ

        Not unlike the Serengeti, most likely. (I see where my attempt to type ‘grips’ became grasp, in my previous message. Spellcheck might be useful in come cases, but certainly not when it comes to phrasing.)

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