Armenian soup

The Cranks recipe book always seemed worthy but heavy, but the soups are good and this was one of our favourites

50g red lentils, washed
50g dried apricots, washed
1 large potato
1.2 litres vegetable stock
1 Lemon, juice of
1 tsp cumin
3 tbsp fresh chopped parsley or coriander
Salt and pepper
to serve:
plain yogurt
fresh flat parsley

Roughly chop potato and add to the pan, with all other ingredients.
Bring to the boil, cover and simmer for 30 minutes.
Allow to cool then blend until smooth but still with some texture.
Reheat to serving temperature and adjust seasoning to taste.
Drizzle in a little yogurt and add a few parsley leaves to serve.

syllabub

who says English food is boring?

for 4

2 large egg whites
50g caster sugar
grated lemon rind (about half a lemon)
juice of 1 lemon
120ml/ 1/4pt dry white wine
300ml double cream
lemon slices

Beat egg white until very stiff.
Fold in the caster sugar, lemon rind and juice and wine.
Whip the cream until thick but not too stiff and fold evenly through the mixture.
Spoon into 4 glasses and leave to stand in a cool place for several hours to allow the mixture to separate.
Decorate with lemon slices.