Loaded with an assortment of vegetables and enhanced and thickened with red lentils, this delicious and healthy soup, comes together in minutes and is cooked and ready to eat in little over half an hour. The best bit – it was made from rather sad looking, left-over vegetables found loitering in the bottom of my fridge. I simply throw everything into a pan, simmer until soft and purée – no sweating or roasting vegetables required and hence no fat added either.
Serves 6 - 8
Collect together your equipment (see Recipe Notes below) and ingredients.
Make the soup: prepare your ingredients and throw into a large pan with the lentils, seasoning, stock cubes and boiling water. I used:
- 2½ leeks – trimmed, washed and sliced
- 1 red pepper – stem and seeds removed, chopped
- 3 potatoes – peeled and cubed
- 5 carrots – peeled, if necessary, and roughly sliced
- 1 onion – peeled and chopped
- 5 spring onions – trimmed and chopped
Mix well and heat over a moderate temperature until gently simmering. Cook for 20 – 30 minutes, or until all the vegetables are soft and cooked through. Stir from time to time.
Leave to cool a little and then purée using a hand blender or a food processor.
Brussels sprout topping: trim and slice the Brussels sprouts.
Heat the butter over a moderately high heat and add the Brussels sprouts.
Cook until the sprouts are starting to soften and are lightly caramelised. This should only take around 3-4 minutes. Stir from time to time and add salt and pepper, to taste.
Serve the soup drizzled with olive oil and topped with the Brussels sprouts, or your topping of choice. Delicious with some warm, fresh bread.
Equipment: