Have you ever made Lettuce Soup? Lettuce is a much-overlooked ingredient, as well as serving as a salad, you can braise it and serve as a vegetable and you can make a delicious soup.
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Reduce, Recycle, Reuse Waste
Soup is also a brilliant way to use lettuces from the garden or allotment that have bolted and are past their best.
Even better you can use that forgotten lettuce at the bottom of the fridge, you know, the one that is slightly limp, maybe a little brown around the edges. Not a wet and slimy lettuce, I’m afraid that one goes in the compost heap.
Growing Lettuce
Lettuce has to be one of the easiest crops to grow. Salad Bowl lettuce is the easiest and you can pick as much as you need and then come back for more.
Other lettuces are no more difficult, you simply plant the seeds and keep them watered and they will grow. You do need to watch out for slugs and other predators but some of your seeds will germinate and survive.
Lettuce grows well in containers too, so if you don’t have a patch of ground you can still grow lettuce. Pay attention to the watering as this is even more crucial when a plant is in a container.
What else goes into Lettuce Soup?
Traditionally Lettuce Soup is made only with lettuce and onions or leeks, but I like to add a few carrots as they add a little sweetness.
I also added a few chard leaves from the garden just because I had some. If I have some celery I’ will happily add that too.
As long as there is more lettuce than other ingredients, then you won’t lose the delicacy of flavour.
Lettuce Soup is really quick and easy to make, so next time you are about to throw out lettuce, remember you can make Lettuce Soup!
Optimum Vac 2 Air Vacuum Blender
I used the Optimum Vac 2 Air Vacuum Blender to blend my lettuce soup. A high power blender like this one really makes a difference to the smoothness of a blended soup.
If you want to find out more then read my review of the Vac 2 where I go through all the features of this amazing power blender.
f you’d like to order an Optimum Vac2 Air Vacuum Blender, at time of writing it’s on offer at £299. Order through the link above and you will receive free P&P. Just add “3116 free ambassador delivery” to the comment box when ordering. If you order by phone, just mention the code. The delivery charge will be credited back to your card.
More Spring and Summer Soup Recipes from Farmersgirl Kitchen
Carrot and Tomato Soup
Simply Seasonal Wild Garlic, Ham and Pea Chowder
Summer Vegetable Soup
More Recipes using cooked salad vegetables:
Bean and Roasted Radish Salad with Oregano Dressing – Natural Kitchen Adventures
Leftover Salad Soup – Fuss Free Flavours
Marinated Grilled Cucumbers with Garlic and Dill Dip – Veggie Desserts
How to make Lettuce Soup
Ingredients
- 25 g butter
- 1 large onion roughly chopped
- 1 large or two smaller carrots washed and finely diced
- 2 heads of lettuce or about 200 g leaves
- 1 tbs chopped chives
- 300 ml vegetable stock
- salt & pepper
- 300 ml full fat milk
- 1 tsp chopped parsley to serve
- A little single cream to serve
Instructions
- Melt the butter over a medium heat.
- Add the chopped onions and carrots and cook until the onions soft.
- Roughly chop the lettuce and add to the pan, cook until the lettuce has wilted.
- Add the stock, season with a little salt and pepper and cook for about 5-10 minutes until the carrots are just softened.
- Remove from the heat add place into a blender with the milk.
- Blend until completely smooth, taste and add seasoning if required.
- Reheat and serve with a swirl of cream and a sprinkling of chopped chives
I’ve never actually tried lettuce soup before, but I am forever finding half-eaten, browned lettuces in the salad drawer so I should probably give it a try!
This recipe is definitely for you Hannah! You can add lettuce to any soup you are going to blend.
That looks and sounds delicious! I’ve never even heard of putting lettuce in soup before, but why not? Will have to give it a try next time I forget about a lettuce in the fridge…
I hope you do Helen, you won’t be disappointed.
I’ve never had lettuce soup but it sounds good. Great tip for using up limp lettuce in fridge!
Thanks, Michelle. It is a delicious soup.
I’ve never tried lettuce soup, it sounds such a useful way of eating it up and moving a summer veg into the autumn!
Well, I’m surprised Ceri! You do such amazing things with vegetables, i thought you would have tried this, not to late to start now though.