Mary Berry shares simple cooking tips for a ‘lovely’ soup

Ready in as little as 30 minutes, Mary Berry’s leek and stilton soup can be made ahead of time and stored in the fridge for up to two days.

As such, if made ahead, you could bring out the wintry soup whenever you felt like it and gently warm it up to eat in no time.

To make this perfect winter-warming meal, all you require are kitchen essentials, such as a chopping board, a colander, saucepans, a grater, and a strainer.

With very little equipment used to make this recipe, you will find that there isn’t much washing up to do, which is always a bonus.

If you would like to make Merry Berry’s delicious wintry leek and stilton soup recipe, here’s how to do so.

Mary Berry’s winter leek and stilton soup recipe

Ingredients

350g leeks

600ml milk

Two bay leaves

Nutmeg

75g butter

75g plain flour

1.2 litres stock

Salt and black pepper

150g Stilton cheese

Single cream

Fresh chopped parsley or chives

Method

Cut the leeks into four lengthways and shred finely on the diagonal. Wash and drain thoroughly.

Measure the milk into a small saucepan, heat until your hand feels hot over low heat, then add the bay leaves and a grating of nutmeg.

Mary Berry shared her first top cooking tip for the leek and stilton soup; she said: “It is really worthwhile infusing the milk, if you have time, with the bay leaves and nutmeg.”

The British cook recommended infusing the milk with bay leaves and nutmeg “for about 10 minutes”. Mary Berry explained why her tip is so useful: “It gives a lovely flavour to the milk.”

Next, melt the butter in a pan, add the flour and cook for a few moments. Add the strained hot milk, stirring well, then add the stock.

Stir in the leeks, season (using very little salt because of the salty Stilton cheese) and bring to the boil.

For Mary Berry’s next top cooking tip, she suggested “coarsely grating the Stilton” instead of breaking up the cheese with your fingers.

She explained: “I find crumbling unsatisfactory, as it is sticky and gets under the nails.”

For the recipe, the next step is to simmer the seasoned leek for a few minutes, then add the grated cheese and stir well.

Cover and simmer over low heat for 15 minutes until the leeks are tender. Check the seasoning.

Mary Berry added her third and final cooking tip in regards to this specific recipe: “If the soup is a little too thick, thin down with milk or stock.”

Once the leeks are tender, serve with a little added single cream, and garnish with freshly chopped parsley or chives.