Maggie Beer's new soups

Soup is sometimes just what I crave on a cold night. Warming and comforting, it fills the spot without weighing you down.

My favourite varieties are pumpkin, beef + vegetable, pea and ham and a fish soup which I haven't made for a while. My partner thinks the idea of fish soup 'is just wrong' and I'm struggling to find a way to present it that doesn't look like soup - suggestions?

Anyway I was more than pleased when asked to trial Maggie Beer's new soup range.  Sometimes I want it but I just haven't got the energy to go through the proper process and I've yet to find a soup in a can or a packet that doesn't taste as though it came from one.

Maggie's soups have that individual flavour that's all to do with good ingredients and proper cooking processes rather than mass production.

I tried two of the four varieties - Pumpkin and Verjuice with Mascarpone and Tomato, Saffron and Verjuice.

As a fan of Maggie's verjuice it wasn't hard to like the soups.  The pumpkin soup has a rich, home made flavour with a creaminess from the mascarpone and a slight zing from the verjuice.  The label suggests serving it with a blob of mascarpone (but you could also use cream or yoghurt) and some good crusty bread.  It was delicous and filling.

The verjuice shone through a little stronger in the tomato soup. The flavour was ripe tomatoes with a splash of saffron spice and the tang of the verjuice.  This also was great with crusty bread and, next time, I think I'll try a little finely shredded basil on top.

The other varieties are Portobello & Porcini Mushroom with Creme Fraiche, which has hints of rosemary and thyme and Sweet Potato, Pear and Ginger which is next on my list to try.

The container easily feeds two people for a filling meal.

Find it at Black Pearl Epicure or at your local deli.

Black Pearl Epicure 
6 Baxter St, Fortitude Valley (07) 3257 2144