Lord, I'm starting to sound like Fanny Craddock.. or a right penny pinching sour faced old bag! I prefer the sour faced old bag.. but you make up your own mind. :D
Butter and oil
Garlic
Pancetta or bacon - chopped
1 finely chopped onion
2 or 3 sticks celery - diced
2 or 3 medium potatoes - diced
2 or 3 courgettes
2 large carrots - diced
Cabbage - shredded
2 or 3 fresh ripe tomatoes
2 or 3 large tomatoes - chop roughly
Chicken stock - cheat like I do and use stock cubes
Pasta - more or less any type you want - break into 2 inch pieces if using spaghetti
2 tablespoons tomato puree
Parsley, Thyme and Rosemary
Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper
Anything else you fancy or have to hand
No two soups will ever be the same - depending on what ingredients you put it in..
You can put a bit of pesto on the top.. or add red lentils or rice instead of, or as well as the pasta - you can use a leftover chicken carcass to make the stock or a shin bone - you can add kidney beans or butter beans.. or even pearl barley.. just use whatever vegetables are in season.. you can do what you want, but the basic recipe is..
Melt the butter in a pan.. add a bit of oil and then fry the garlic - dont let it burn - it tastes awful. Fry the bacon and add the raw vegetables - fry until translucent and almost cooked.. but not heavily coloured. Add the stock - simmer slowly for ten minutes. Add the pasta and any remaining ingredients. Simmer on a low heat for 30-35 minutes or until the soup has slightly thickened. Serve sprinkled with the parmesan cheese, the parsley and a big hunk of bread.. the harder the better - so you can dunk it in to let it soften and then have a good suck on it.. great for toothless wonders of the world! :D :D
There will be enough to feed the five thousand.. for about 15p a bowl.. and it ALWAYS tastes better the next day.