We might think of honeydew melon soup as sweet, but here, combined with the slight bitterness of chicory, it makes a lovely, light soup. Crispy croutons? Why not.

Difficulty: easy
Cost: low
Preparation time: 15 minutes + 10 minutes cooking
Serves: 4

Method

Separate the leaves of the chicory and wash them very well in several changes of water to get rid of any earth.  Blanch them in boiling water.

Drain the chicory and cut the leaves into small pieces. Then sauté the chicory gently in a little extra virgin olive oil in a saucepan. Add the water and simmer for 25 minutes.

Dice the melon and sauté it in a frying pan in extra virgin olive oil, season with salt and pepper.

Rub the bread slices with cut garlic to flavour them. Then cut the bread into small croutons and fry in a little extra virgin olive oil until golden, then set aside. 

Peel and dice the carrot. Peel and roughly chop the onion. Wash and slice finely the celery.

Add the vegetables to the chicory, bring to the boil and cook for about ten minutes.  

Then assemble the dish – put the garlic-rubbed croutons first on each plate and then add the soup and the melon. Enjoy!