Maman Blanc's Vegetable and Chervil Soup

A small tribute to “Maman Blanc”. And I should say to Papa Blanc, too, as most of the vegetable would come from his garden. The success of this soup depends upon the freshness and quality of the vegetable used. However, you can vary the vegetables and herbs according to the season. Chervil is one of my favourite herbs and is very popular in France but less well known in the UK, although you can now find it in most supermarkets. From Raymond Blanc's Foolproof French Cookery book.

Serves 4-6
Contains Dairy to finish the soup but this can be left out.
Vegetarian

Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 10-12 minutes

Ingredients
• 1 onion, cut into 3m (1/8 in) dice
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 2 large carrots, cut into slices 3mm (1/4 in) thick
• 3 celery sticks, cut into slices 5mm (1/4in) thick
• 2 leek, 2 outer layers removed, cut into slices 1cm (1/2 in) thick
• 15g (1/2oz) unsalted butter
• 1 large courgette, halved lengthways and cut into slices 5mm (1/4 in) thick
• 2 ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped
• 1 litre (1 ¾ pints) boiling water
• a large handful of fresh chervil, roughly chopped
• sea salt and freshly ground white pepper
  
  To finish the soup:
• 1 tablespoon crème fraiche (or a large tub) or 15g (1/2 oz) unsalted butter

Instructions
1. On a medium heat, in a large saucepan, soften the onion, garlic, carrots, celery and leeks in the butter for 5 minutes, without letting them colour (this helps to extract maximum flavour). Season with 8 pinches of salt and 2 pinches of white pepper.
   
   
2. Add the courgette, tomatoes and boiling water (using boiling water reduces the cooking time and also helps keep the colours bright). Boil fast for 5-7 minutes, until the vegetables are just tender. Stir in the chopped chervil.
   
   
   
3. Whisk in the crème fraiche or butter (or both, if you wish). Taste and correct the seasoning if necessary, then serve. This soup can be pureed in a blender if you prefer a smooth texture.

Copyright Raymond Blanc.