Cream of Brussels Sprout Soup 

This is a beautiful soup that will have even brussels sprouts haters salivating.  It's actually very similar in principal to leek and potato, and the addition of potato gives it the base creaminess and body.  You decide whether you want to add the cream - it adds another luxurious dimension and zips it up on the 'special' notch.

Saute and sweat a large chopped onion and slices of two medium potatoes in about 50g butter (or margarine if you prefer) for about 10 minutes, occasionally stirring.

Add to the pan about 450g brussels sprouts, 900ml vegetable stock, the zest and juice of half a lemon, ¼ tsp ground cloves and ¼ tsp ground nutmeg.  Season with salt and pepper, and simmer gently in a covered pan for a further 10 minutes, or until the sprouts are tender.

Zuss the soup with a blender, and stir in about 150ml single cream, if using.

The addition of some sprinkles always looks great on soup, and adds some texture. 
In this case, I used toasted pine nuts, but use your imagination and add whatever you fancy - for example, toasted flaked almonds, croutons, crispy onions etc.