Trimmings soup

We're having our main meal at lunchtime today, as husband has a late afternoon hospital appointment and we're not expecting to be home until 6pm or gone.  I don't like to eat our main meal too late in the evening or it might give me indigestion when I go to bed.

So lunch will be a jacket spud with spicy pork and beans....the pork left over from Sunday lunch, the beans our favourite Branston ones from a tin, with a shake of smoked paprika and sage stirred in.  And probably a sprinkle of grated Cheddar on top.  

For supper I'm making soup.  I've kept a bag in the freezer for the past month or so, of the stalks and trimmings of cauliflower and broccoli, adding more to it whenever we've had them.  This morning I chopped up a leek (home grown, we have lots now) and a large potato and softened them in a little oil, the potato gives a bit of body to the soup.  I then added the chopped cauli and broccoli trimmings and stirred it all around for another couple of minutes, before adding some dried Italian herbs and sage.  A litre of hot vegetable stock was poured in, and it's now simmering for 20 mins or so.  Once cooled, I'll whizz it up with my stick blender and reheat this evening with a splash of cream and some crumbled blue Stilton stirred in to melt.

Whilst the oven's on for the jacket potatoes, I'll put a couple of slices of our homemade bread in there to dry out, drizzled with a bit of olive oil and sprinkled with garlic granules and smoked paprika.  They'll make croutons for the soup.