30-Minute Pea And Asparagus Soup - cooking recipe

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups chicken stock or 2 1/2 cups vegetable stock
8 -9 green onions
1 lb frozen peas
12 small asparagus spears
salt and black pepper
3 slices rindless streaky bacon
1 -2 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 slices day-old white bread (we used fresh French bread instead)
3 tablespoons whipped cream (we used 2 slices French goat cheese instead)

Preparation

Pour the stock into a 2 qt/2 L pot and set on the stove over high heat. (If you work quickly, cover the pot to boil even quicker.) Rinse the green onions, trim and chop them roughly, add them to the stock with the frozen peas, and bring to a boil.
Rinse the asparagus spears, remove the tips and set aside. Roughly chop the stems (you can use the whole stem as it's all going to be pureed) and add them to the saucepan with a pinch of salt. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer 10-15 minutes, or until asparagus is tender.
Meanwhile, snip the bacon slices directly into a hot frying pan and fry until crisp and golden. Transfer these to a plate and set aside for garnish.
If there is not enough bacon fat left in the pan for frying, add 1-2 tablespoons of oil and heat. Cut the bread into small dice and fry for 2-3 minutes over high heat, turning frequently, until golden, then set aside to drain on kitchen paper (paper towel) for garnish.
When the peas and asparagus are done, blend or process the soup to a puree. You can use a hand blender to blend the soup right in the pot. Just be sure to keep it pointing down and keep the entire head of the blender under the surface of the soup (to avoid spraying yourself with hot green liquid!).
Add the reserved asparagus tips to the pea soup and simmer for 5 minutes, or until tender.
Pour the soup into warmed serving bowls. Swirl a little whipped cream into each (we set a round of goat cheese on the surface of the soup, so it melted in a bit) and sprinkle with the crispy bacon pieces, croutons, and some freshly ground black pepper to serve.