Soup, soup, soup for winter comfort from the Good Food team

Short on brothy inspiration? Here's a collection of the Good Food team's favourite brews and chowders. What's yours? Tweet us @goodfoodAU.

Minestrone

"Mr Only", as my partner calls it, was one of the first soups he wooed me with – never say a steaming broth of veg and carbs isn't romantic. Now he's moved on to pea and ham, and I make the minestrone. I love two recipes: the first by Neil Perry, featured on our cover; find it here. The other is by Antonio Carluccio from his book Pasta. I love how Carluccio's recipe isn't too tomatoey, and the heartiness of the borlotti beans. A dollop of pesto on top adds pizzazz. - Nina Rousseau

Antonio Carluccio's minestrone

This version of minestrone is influenced by those served in Lombardy and Liguria, but you will find similar soups – and some surprisingly different – throughout the country. Most minestrone use bits and pieces of vegetables left in the fridge, like zucchini, eggplant, carrot, celery, cabbage, quartered brussels sprouts etc. You could add some potatoes as well, to add thickness.

4 tbsp olive oil

1 garlic clove, peeled and finely chopped

1 onion, peeled and finely chopped

2 litres chicken or beef stock

about 1kg vegetables (see above for suggestions), prepared and cubed

150g dried tubettini pasta

1 x 400g can borlotti beans, drained

3 tbsp fresh pesto

salt and pepper, to taste

40g parmesan, freshly grated

Alternatives: If you don't want to have a vegetarian soup, you could add some Parma ham, cooked ham or bacon chunks. You could also use rice instead of pasta, or any other shape of pasta.

1. Put the oil in a pan and fry the garlic and onion for a few minutes.

2. Add the stock and prepared vegetables, and cook for about 12 minutes.

3. Add the pasta and drained beans, and cook until tender, about another six to seven minutes, then remove from the heat.

4. Mix in the pesto and salt and pepper to taste, and heat very gently. Serve immediately, sprinkled with
parmesan.

Serves 4

This is an edited extract from Pasta by Antonio Carluccio.

Pumpkin soup with dukkah

You can't put enough fresh ginger and spice into this crowd-pleaser. I make it whenever the pumpkin pile is getting out of control. Freezes well; great for work lunches or no-fuss dinners. - Jane Holroyd

about 1kg pumpkin

1 onion, sliced or diced

2 tbsp olive oil

Good chunk ginger (about 5cm), diced into small pieces

2-4 garlic cloves, diced

1-2 tsp ground cumin

1-2 tsp ground coriander seed

1-2 tsp brown sugar

500ml chicken or vegetable stock

½ cup red lentils

salt and pepper to taste

Greek yoghurt, dukkah spice mix and coriander leaves, to serve

Roast whole pumpkin in oven for 15 minutes to soften skin. Remove skin, chop up and remove seeds. Slice pumpkin flesh into cubes (approx 4 centimetres). Meanwhile, fry the onion in the olive oil, then add ginger and garlic. Fry the whole lot until soft.

Add the cumin, coriander and brown sugar and fry for another minute or so. Add the pumpkin cubes, then the stock and lentils and stir. Simmer for 15-20 minutes or until pumpkin is soft. Process or blend until smooth, and season to taste.

Ladle into bowls, add a dollop of Greek yoghurt, a generous sprinkle of dukkah and a few sprigs of coriander.

Serves 6

Jerusalem artichoke

These knobbly, underground ugly sisters to the blooms of the true artichoke are harvested from late autumn and have a reputation for causing gale-force wind in some individuals. But - hello, Cinderella - they're a cinch to trick up into what is arguably winter's swankiest soup - subtle, nutty and satin-smooth. - Cathy Gowdie

80g butter

1kg jerusalem artichokes

500g potatoes

4 leeks, white parts only, sliced into coins

1 litre chicken or vegetable stock

salt and white pepper

1 lemon

creme fraiche or goat's curd, to serve

Peel artichokes, placing them in a bowl of cold water into which you have squeezed a lemon (this inhibits discolouration). Peel potatoes and cut into pieces about the same size as the artichokes. Take a suspicious look at the cut-up leeks for lurking dirt and rinse if necessary.

Melt butter over low heat in a large, heavy saucepan and sweat the leeks,covered, until they wilt - don't let them brown. Add potatoes and artichokes and season with salt and white pepper. Add stock and enough water to cover the vegetables; simmer until artichokes and potatoes are tender.

Puree, adding seasoning and maybe a little more water to thin the soup to taste. If you like, add a spoonful of creme fraiche or goat's curd to each bowl. Leftovers freeze nicely.

Serves 8

Sichuan hot and sour soup

I lust after this hot, sour, salty, peppery (rather than chilli-hot) Sichuanese soup whenever the temperature drops, because it's just so warming and satisfying on every level. And I love it when you put too much Sichuan pepper on it and it makes your tongue go numb. Sichuan preserved vegetables are available canned from Asian food stores. - Terry Durack

100g pork fillet

1 celery stalk

2 tsp cornflour

5 dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked

100g bamboo shoots, rinsed

1 thumb-sized knob of ginger, peeled

50g fresh or soaked, dry wood-ear fungus

1.4 litres chicken stock

50g sliced Sichuan preserved vegetable

100g fresh tofu, diced

2 spring onions (green part only), sliced

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp cornflour, mixed with 2 tbsp Chinese rice wine

1 egg, beaten

3 tbsp coriander, finely chopped

2 tbsp black vinegar

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tsp Sichuan peppercorns, ground

Cut pork into thin matchstick lengths, toss with cornflour and salt, and set aside. Finely grate the celery lengthwise into fine filaments and set aside. Drain the mushrooms, trim and finely slice. Cut mushrooms, bamboo shoots, ginger, and fungus into matchsticks.

Bring the chicken stock to the boil. Add the mushrooms, bamboo shoots, ginger, fungus, and Sichuan vegetables and simmer for three minutes. Add the pork strips, tofu, spring onions, soy sauce, salt and cornflour mixture, stirring, until the stock thickens.

Pour the beaten egg gradually into the simmering soup through the tines of a fork and stir through until it forms fine shreds. Remove from the heat, and add the celery, coriander, vinegar, sesame oil and Sichuan pepper. Add extra vinegar and pepper to get the right balance of hot and sour, and serve.

Serves 4

Italian chicken noodle soup

Chicken noodle soup is great. Chicken noodle soup with pesto, parmesan, lemon zest and a slug of olive oil is even better. - Jill Dupleix

1½ litres chicken stock

4 chicken thighs

2 carrots, peeled and sliced

2 leeks, trimmed, sliced

2 celery stalks, sliced

2 bay leaves

sea salt and cracked black pepper

150g vermicelli

3 tbsp flat parsley leaves, chopped

2 tbsp pesto

2 tbsp grated parmesan

2 tsp grated lemon zest

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Rinse the chicken thighs and pat dry. Place the stock in a large pot, add the chicken, and slowly bring to the boil, skimming. Add carrots, leeks, celery, bay leaves, sea salt and pepper, and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove the chicken, and continue to simmer the vegetables for a further 10 minutes or until tender.

Shred the chicken meat, discarding any skin or bones. Cook the pasta in simmering salted water until al dente, then drain.

To serve, return the chicken to the broth with the noodles, and gently heat through. Add the parsley and ladle the soup and noodles into four warmed pasta bowls. Serve with a dollop of pesto, grated parmesan, lemon zest, cracked black pepper and a drizzle of olive oil.

Serves 4

Cauliflower and kombu soup

You can't use chicken stock when cooking soup for vegetarian friends and it hurts. Behind every great cauliflower soup is a greater chicken stock, so to give vego-friendly soups backbone I use a handful of the dried Japanese seaweed, kombu. I've served this topped with arame seaweed and not-so-vego-friendly cider-steamed clams but wild mushrooms, crisp pancetta and roasted chestnuts are other nice ideas. Kombu and arame can be found at select Asian food stores. - Callan Boys

1.2 litres vegetable stock

30g shio kombu, finely chopped

2 knobs butter

40ml olive oil

1 large cauliflower, florets chopped, stalks discarded

1 large potato (a Dutch cream would be terrific), peeled and chopped

1 onion, chopped

500ml milk (the creamier the better - no light milk under any circumstances, you hear?)

200ml double cream

2 cloves garlic, sliced

500g surf clams (Cloudy Bay diamond shells are tops)

1 bottle Hillbilly apple cider

25g arame seaweed

Add the stock and kombu to a large saucepan and let it simmer on a low heat. Meanwhile, heat one knob of the butter and olive oil on a low heat in another large saucepan. Throw in the cauliflower, potato and onion, stir until things start sizzling, then cover with a lid and sweat the vegetables for at least 15 minutes, stirring occasionally until they're soft but not coloured.

Pour in the stock and kombu and bring to the boil. Pour in the milk, bring to the boil again, reduce heat, and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes. Now would be a good time to season to taste, but be careful with any salt because that stock packs a punch.

Pour in the cream and blend everything in batches, transferring the blended soup to the empty stock saucepan. You could also put it through a sieve after blending, but it's winter and a thick soup is a good soup. Let the blended soup have some time to recognise its place in the world over a very low heat while you steam the clams.

Melt the remaining butter over a medium heat in a saucepan and cook the garlic until tender. Add the clams and cider, increase heat slightly, and cover the pot. Cook for 5-10 minutes or until the clams have opened, giving the pot a couple of shakes in the process and treating yourself to any remaining cider in the fridge.

Cook the arame in hot water according to packet instructions. Ladle the soup into bowls and serve with a few clams and a tangle of arame.

Serves 8

Potato, corn and bacon chowder

The smoked paprika and bacon adds a whiff campfire smokiness to this chunky chowder. You can replace the milk with sour cream, creme fraiche or cream before serving if you prefer. - Roslyn Grundy

1 tbspolive oil

30g unsalted butter

3 bacon rashers, rind removed, chopped

1 leek (white part only), finely chopped

1 onion, finely chopped

2 tbsp plain flour

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

1 litre chicken stock

650g potatoes, peeled and finely chopped

2 corn cobs, kernels removed (or 200g canned corn kernels)

125ml milk

salt and freshly ground pepper

2 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley

Heat oil and butter in a large pan over medium heat. Add bacon and cook until just starting to crisp. Reduce heat to low, add leek and onion and cook for five minutes or until softened but not browned.

Stir in the flour and paprika and cook, stirring, for a further minute, then add stock. Increase heat to medium-high. Add the potatoes and simmer for three minutes, then stir in the corn, and simmer until the potatoes are just tender. (If using canned corn, stir it in after simmering the chowder for about six minutes.)

Stir in the milk to warm through, then season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in parsley just before serving.

Serves 6

Greek lentil soup

This recipe was brought from Greece by my 71-year-old grandmother. It's a perfect hearty soup for winter for times when you've had enough meat.- Nicole Papaz

1 cup green lentils

1 brown onion, diced

2 carrots, diced

3 celery sticks, diced

2 potatoes

1/2 red capsicum, diced

1/2 green capsicum, diced

1 cup vegetable stock

1 cup passata

2 cloves of garlic, minced

5 tbsp olive oil

1/2 tsp sweet paprika

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried chilli flakes

2 bay leaves

a few sprigs flat-leaf parsley

salt and pepper to taste

Place lentils in a medium saucepan and cover with water, cook on high heat until boiling, then drain the water. . Place lentils back into the saucepan with minced garlic, diced vegetables, bay leaves and peeled potatoes cut in half. Add vegetable stock and hot water to cover. Cook on medium heat until potatoes have softened (about 20-30 minutes).

Once potatoes have cooked, remove from saucepan and mash them. Place mashed potatoes back into the soup. Heat olive oil in a small pan, add sweet paprika and passata. Mix and cook until well combined, about five minutes. . Stir oil and passata mix into soup. Add oregano, chilli flakes and salt and pepper to taste. Cook for a further 30 minutes or until lentils are softened.

Ladle the soup into bowls and top with freshly cut parsley.

Serves 4