Ingredients

• 1½ lb potatoes
• 3 oz carrots
• 1 stick celery
• 1 leek
• 4 oz onion
• 4 oz smoked bacon, diced
• 2½ pints water
• 1 level teaspoonful salt
•   freshly milled black pepper
• ¾ level teaspoonful dried marjoram
• ½ level teaspoonful dried fines herbes
• 1 sprig parsley, with stem
• 1 level teaspoonful parsley, chopped
• 4 oz German sausage, chopped
•   croutons

Method

1. Prepare the vegetables and cut neatly into dice or slice.
2. In a saucepan, fry the bacon over a low heat to extract the fat. Add the vegetables and sauté for 2–3 minutes.
3. Cover with water. Season with salt, pepper, marjoram and fines herbes. Bring to the boil, add the parsley sprig then simmer gently until all the vegetables are well cooked — about 45 minutes.
4. Using a sieve or electric blender, purée the soup. Add the chopped parsley and German sausage. Reheat in a clean pan to serving temperature. Garnish with croutons.

Notes