Soups

Home-made soups

Soups are fantastic for any-time of the day. Out and about, lunch time or when you get home in the evening and are starving! (This is a tricky time where many people struggle  – when we are waiting to cook dinner. If some soup is ready and pre-made you are less like to raid the press) 

Sweet Potato and Ginger Soup (Serves 4/5)

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 medium onion
  • 4 cloves of garlic
  • 1kg sweet potato 
  • 2 medium carrot (approx. 200g)
  • ¼ of a large celeriac (approx. 200g/250g) or 1 potato 
  • a thumb-size piece of ginger 
  • 1.5 tsp of salt (or to taste)
  • 1.5 litres of veg stock/ water
  • juice of 1 lime ½
  • a tsp black pepper (to taste)

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Peel and roughly chop the onion and garlic. Chop sweet potatoes, leaving their skin on. 
  2. Roughly chop the carrots and celeriac/potato. Peel and finely chop the ginger. 
  3. Sauté the onion, garlic and ginger in 3 tbsp. of water on a low heat (add a little more water if veg is sticking to the bottom of the pot). 
  4. Next add the carrot, celeriac/potato and ginger. Add a tsp salt to help sweat the flavours out of the carrot and celeriac, and leave for 5 mins on medium heat, stirring regularly. 
  5. Now add the sweet potatoes and the veg stock/water; and bring to the boil, then turn down the heat and leave to simmer for 25 mins or until sweet potato is soft. 
  6. Turn off the heat, squeeze the juice of the lime in and blend until smooth using a soup / hand blender (if soup is too thick, add more boiling water; if too watery then add something to bulk it out, such as a tin of drained chickpeas / more potato). 
  7. Season with salt and pepper.

Creamy tomato and Cannellini bean soup (Serves 2)

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 tsp olive oil
  • 1 onion finely chopped
  • 600g fresh whole tomatoes quartered
  • ½ red chilli finely chopped
  • Pinch of salt
  • 400g tin chopped tomatoes
  • 500ml vegetable stock
  • Handful of basil leaves (optional)
  • 400g tin of cannellini beans drained and rinsed

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium heat
  2. Add the onion and cook for about 5 mins until softened
  3. Stir in the fresh tomatoes, chilli and salt
  4. Cover and cook for about 10 mins stirring occasionally
  5. Add the tinned tomatoes and stock to the pan and stir well
  6. Cover and simmer for 20 mins stirring occasionally
  7. Take the pan off the heat and stir in the basil 
  8. Puree the soup with a hand blender until smooth
  9. Stir in the cannellini beans
  10. Return the pan to the heat and reheat gently before serving

Onion soup (serves 2) 

INGREDIENTS

  • 225g onion 
  • 450ml water ( or vegetable stock – I use Just Bouillon) 
  • Salt 
  • Pepper
  • Bay leaf 

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Chop the onions and soften them in a saucepan with a little butter
  2. Pour in 450ml of water with homemade chicken broth or bought stock 
  3. Add salt and pepper and bay leaf (add some chilli flakes if looking for more heat)
  4. Let it simmer gently for 45 mins. 
  5. Blend  (take out the bay leaf first)  
  6. Option to add roasted veg like fennel, parsnip or celery to add more nutrients and fill you up