Spring vegetable soup

Fresh, simple and so tasty. Make it once and you might just get hooked! Ring the changes with other seasonal vegetables or make it with what’s left in the fridge at the end of the week.

Ingredients

• 1 large brown onion
• 2 leeks
• 1 tbsp of butter
• 400g potatoes, peeled and chopped into small pieces
• 1 clove of garlic or a handful of wild garlic leaves, finely chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled and finely diced
• 200g frozen peas
• 200g purple sprouting broccoli, cut into slim pieces
• 500ml of boiling water or homemade chicken stock if you prefer. If using stock cubes, use 1 and a half for every 500ml of water.
• Chopped fresh herbs, I used mint and chives
• The end of parmesan or a chunk of Cheddar cheese
• Salt and pepper

Method

1. Chop onions, potatoes, leeks and carrots into small pieces.
2. Cook the onion and leeks in butter until soft. Add the chopped potatoes and carrots and stir well. Cook for about 5 minutes on the hob, stirring regularly.
3. Add the garlic and continue to cook.
4. Pour over the stock and add the end of a piece of parmesan or hard cheese.
5. Add the herbs and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 40 minutes. The potatoes and carrots should be tender.
6. Add the broccoli stems and cook for about 5 minutes, before adding the frozen peas and cooking for a final 5 minutes. Blend a little but leave most of the vegetables in chunks.
7. Season well with salt and pepper.