Mediterannean soup + Le Cirque Côtes Catalanes

Mediterannean soup + Le Cirque Côtes Catalanes

Wednesday August 24th, 2016 0 By Marion

This is a mediterranean soup recipe which is perfect to end the summer. You can either make it with vegetables only and serve it as a starter, warm or cold, or, just like me, add some rice to make it a main course.

Serves 6 to 8 – 1 hour

Ingredients

  • 2 onions
  • 3 garlic cloves
  • 1 large tomato or 3 small
  • 1 aubergine
  • 1 zucchini
  • 1 fennel
  • 1 sweet red pepper
  • 1 handfull stoned black olives
  • 150 g rice
  • 4 preserved Collioure anchovy fillets
  • 3 tablespoons tomato concentrate
  • 1 tablespoon mustard
  • 1 teaspoon harissa
  • 1 teaspoon ground chilly pepper
  • 2 litres vegetable stock
  • 1 handfull of fresh basil
  • Olive oil, salt and pepper

Preparation

Fry the diced onions and garlic cloves in a pan with a bit of olive oil, the anchovy fillets and the ground chilly pepper.
Add the other vegetables cut into medium-sized chunks, as well as the other ingredients. Cover with vegetable stock and cook for 45 minutes.
Sprinkle some fresh basil leaves, let them infuse and serve either warm or cold.

Wine Pairing


We enjoyed this dish with a wine from the Roussillon, an IGP Côtes Catalanes Le Cirque 2014, made by teh coop Vignerons de Tautavel.

Grapes

60% Grenache, 20% Carignan, 20% Syrah

Tasting

Medium-strong dark ruby colour. On the nose, lots cocoa and black olives. On the palate, we find again the sweet cocoa notes as well as some kirsch and liquorice. This makes a very enjoyable and supple wine, almost sweet (though it is fully dry), without any fuss.
The idea of matching it to my Mediterranean soup came from the strong tapenade notes in the wine, echoing the olives in the dish. The good acidity in the wine is also very important for a dish made with tomatoes.
We could also have enjoyed this wine with some grilled Toulouse sausage served with a tomato salad, or for something a bit different, a platter of Roquefort cheese with some bits of dark chocolate…
You can purchase this wine in France online with Vinatis, at the price of 7.10€/btl, coming down to 4.99 if you buy 6.

CategoryFood + Wine Pairing Food
TagsLight & Healthy Mediterranean Vegan

About The Author

[ENGLISH] My name is Marion Barral and I am passionate about food, wine, sports and photography. Originating from a wine-growing family in the Languedoc (South of France), I studied Agronomic Science in Paris (AgroParisTech). After having worked in the wine trade in the UK, I now travel the world selling wines from the South of France. This allows me to come back to my roots while giving me the opportunity to discover other countries, cultures and languages. This is something I try to share with you in my blog :-) [FRANCAIS]Je m’appelle Marion Barral et je suis passionnée par le vin, l’alimentation, le sport et la photo. Je suis fille de vigneron dans le Languedoc et ingénieur agronome (AgroParisTech). Après avoir travaillé dans le secteur du vin au Royaume-Uni, je parcours le monde pour vendre du vin du sud de la France. En plus d’un retour aux sources, cela me permet de découvrir d’autres pays, langues et cultures. C’est ce que j’essaie de vous faire partager dans mon blog :-)

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