Lightly spiced, but rich in flavour, this soup is beautifully smooth and unctuous. Combine it with kernels of roasted sweetcorn and you get added interest and a flavour boost. It's a particularly good recipe for those extra large courgettes you're not sure what to do with. If you omit the vegan pesto, the soup becomes totally fat free, but it's still delicious.
Place them and all of the ingredients, except for the pesto and remaining corn cob, into a large lidded pan or soup maker. If you’re using a soup maker, add the water last and make sure it doesn’t go above the maximum level.
Cover the pan with the lid, bring to the boil, then simmer for twenty minutes I use a soup maker and it takes half an hour.
Meanwhile, lightly cover the remaining corn cob with ½ tsp olive oil. As soon as the oven is hot enough roast it for fifteen minutes. I use my air-fryer for this, so I don’t need to preheat the oven.
Blend the soup as finely as you can. The smoother it is, the better it will taste. A power blender is good for this, but a stick blender will do a reasonable job.
Pour the soup into bowls and add a good teaspoonful of vegan pesto to each bowl. Cut the kernels from the roasted corn and scatter over the tops.
Notes
Make this soup the traditional way on the stove top, with a pressure cooker, a slow cooker or a soup maker.For a little extra richness first fry the onion and garlic gently in a little olive oil. Then add the remaining ingredients.Can omit the roasted sweetcorn and corn cob and use 200g frozen or tinned sweetcorn in the soup instead.