Stinging Nettle Soup with Crispy Bacon

🧂 Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tsp butter

  or dairy-free alternative
• 1 medium onion

  diced finely
• 1 large white potato

  large, diced, or 1 sweet potato
• 1/3 head cauliflower

  medium head, broken up into florets
• 1/2 head broccoli

  medium head, broken up into florets
• 3 cloves garlic

  diced
• 1 tsp lemon zest

  About 1 lemon
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 cups vegetable stock
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1.5 tsp sea salt
• 2/3 tsp black pepper
• 4-5 cups stinging nettle leaves

  a bunch of 7-8 large stems with leaves
• 4-5 sprigs fresh thyme

  remove and use leaves only, a teaspoon of dry thyme can be used instead
• 2 tbsp lemon juice

  About 1 lemon
• 4 rashers bacon

  diced
• 1/2 cup cream

  or coconut cream for dairy-free version
• Some edible flowers and lemon zest for garnish

Instructions

• 1 Heat a tablespoon of olive oil and a dollop of butter in a large saucepan. Add
  chopped onion and sauté over medium heat for 2-3 minutes. Stir a few times.
• 2 Then add the diced potatoes, cauliflower and broccoli and sauté together for 2
  more minutes. Then add the remaining ingredients for the soup: garlic, lemon
  zest, bay leaf (optional), vegetable stock, mustard, salt, pepper, and thyme and
  bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cook for 10 minutes until all vegetables are
  soft.
• 3 In the meantime, boil some water and pour it over the stinging nettles in a
  sink. This will take most of the sting off. Using scissors, cut off the leaves,
  rinse and set aside. After 10 minutes of cooking, add the nettle leaves to the
  soup and cook for 1-2 minutes, until wilted.
• 4 Purée the soup in batches until smooth. You can use a food processor, a blender
  or an immersion stick.
• 5 To finish the soup, add lemon juice, cream and fresh thyme. Stir over low heat
  for a minute to reheat and taste for salt. Set aside off the heat to settle.
• 6 If using, pan fry the bacon until crisp and add to the soup when serving.

Nutrition Info