Food & Drink

It’s soup season. And don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.

It’s officially autumn. The nights are drawing in. The mornings are chilly. Bake Off is back.

What further proof do you need that it is officially time to start prepping for winter and low-key hibernating? Soup is, obviously, the perfect meal to accompany this.

Nutritious, healthy and simple to make – batch-cooking soup is the perfect solution for all your autumn meal planning. And they don’t have to be boring.

In fact, you can liven up just about any soup recipe by adding apple. Yes, you read that correctly. The sweet, crunchy fruit. Apple is actually a fantastic addition to a hearty liquid meal.

Don’t believe us? Give one of these super simple recipes a try, and prepare to be convinced:

Curried apple and potato soup

Ingredients (serves 2-3)

  • 1 JAZZ Apple (cubed)
  • 1 large red onion (finely diced)
  • 1 large potato (cubed)
  • 1 tbsp curry powder
  • 1 litre vegetable stock (or slightly less if you like a thicker soup)
  • 2 tbsp coconut yoghurt and a little more to drizzle

Method

In a pan, sweat down the onion, apple and potato on a low heat for around 15 mins.

Add in curry powder, stir and cook for another 5 mins.

Add in the vegetable stock and cook for a further 10 mins.

Add in the coconut yoghurt and then blend the soup.

Serve with your choice of bread and a drizzle of coconut yoghurt.

Creamy apple and butternut squash soup

Recipe by Liesl Maddock

Ingredients (serves 4)

  • 1 butternut squash – peeled and chopped
  • 1 JAZZ Apple – peeled and chopped
  • 1 potato – peeled and chopped
  • 1 sprig of thyme
  • 1 cup of vegetable stock
  • 1 cup of cream

Method

Place the prepared potato, butternut squash, apple and sprig of thyme in a pan and bring it all to a boil

Once the vegetables are soft, remove the sprig of thyme and blitz it together

Add a cup of cream and the vegetable stock and cook for a further 3 minutes on the hob.

Serve with fresh crusty bread.

Apple and lentil soup with spiced croutons

Recipe by Melanie Booth

Ingredients (serves 4)

For the croutons

  • 5 thick slices of bread (you can use stale bread if you want – diced
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • ½ tsp herbs du Provence
  • ¼ tsp garlic powder
  • Salt and pepper

For the soup

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 large white onion – diced
  • 2 cloves garlic – crushed
  • 2 tsp cumin
  • 1 large handful fresh mint – finely chopped
  • 240g red lentils
  • 120g bulgur wheat
  • 4 JAZZ Apples – cored, peeled and diced
  • 1 red pepper – seeded and diced
  • 1.8 litres of vegetable stock 
  • Juice of ½ a lemon
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Chopped fresh parsley for garnish

Method

Preheat the oven to 180C (Fan oven).

On a baking tray, add all the crouton ingredients, toss to coat, and bake in the oven for 20 minutes, or until golden and crisp. Set aside.

Meanwhile, sauté the onion and garlic in the olive oil for 5 minutes. Add the cumin and fry for a further 2 minutes. Add all the other ingredients (except croutons and parsley) and bring to the boil. Lower the heat and simmer on a medium heat for 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Blend the soup partially (you want it thick and mostly smooth, but still with a few chunks remaining in it).

Season it to taste before garnishing with the spiced croutons and freshly chopped parsley.

Apple, leek and celeriac soup

Ingredients (serves 4)

For the stock

  • Leftover chicken carcass
  • ½ Leek
  • 2 Carrots
  • 1 Potato
  • 1 Celery stick
  • Salt & Pepper
  • 1 Bay Leaf

For the soup

  • 1 JAZZ Apple (diced)
  • Half a Celeriac (peeled and diced into cubes)
  • ½ Leek
  • 1 ½ litres of chicken stock
  • 1 tbsp olive oil

Method

Gently fry the leek, celeriac and apple in a pan in the olive oil.

Turn the heat down and sweat for 20 minutes. Add the chicken stock.

Blend and season to taste.

Serve with bread or even some chicken leftovers on top.

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