I don’t know about you but I am freezing. And a bowl of soup is the answer! There is something about making your own, homemade soup that is both soothing and satisfying. Thankfully the process is also free from all those chef rules and regulations – you don’t need measurements – just use what you have in your fridge and I can assure you it would be delicious.

If you have two able hands, some time to spare and a whole lot of veggies you can create something quite beautiful and warming for that cold winters’ day. Haul out your mandolin slicer, pour yourself a good glass of wine and you have something splendid in the making.

I am mad about a simple bowl of pea and Eisbein soup. All I do is cook the smoked Eisbein, take the meat,skin and fat of the bone and blitz this with the peas. The skin and fat of the Eisbein gives the soup a silky and smoky flavour. You have to try this for yourself – it’s delicious with a big D.

Pea and Eisbein Soup – a true winter warmer
(Enough for 10)
850 g smoked Eisbein, with bone
8 cups of water
200 g onion, diced
200 g carrots, cut into blocks
2 celery sticks, with leaves
handful of parsley
5 black peppercorns
1 t salt
1 kg frozen peas
To serve:
a handful of mint leaves, finely chopped
cream

Boil the Eisbein, water, onions, carrots, celery, parsley and peppercorns for about 3 hours until soft. Remove the Eisbein from the pot. Cut the meat and fat off the bone, then cut into smaller pieces and put back in the pot full of yummy liquid (fat, skin and everything). Put in the peas and salt and cook for a further 15 minutes. Then, blitz everything – either with a handheld blitzer or a liquidiser until all ingredients have been finely blended. Taste for seasoning. Serve with a dash of cream and some leaves of finely chopped mint.