3 healthy soup recipes

Try these simple soup recipes for a wholesome family meal that’s tasty and low cost to make

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The brilliant thing about soups is you can change them as you want – something hearty for an evening meal, a vegetable soup to use kitchen leftovers, or a slow cooked broth packed with beans and barley, for a complete meal that will warm you up in an instant. We’ve got one of each for you…

Simple vegetable soup recipe

A quick and easy basic recipe to get lots of vegetable goodness into the kids.

Difficulty level: easy 
Prep time: 10 minutes.
Cooking time: 55 minutes

Ingredients (serves 4-6 people)

1. 2 leeks
2. 2 potatoes
3. 3 carrots
4. Other vegetables according to your taste, eg: turnip, parsnip, celeriac, celery, courgette
5. Olive oil
6. Salt and pepper

Directions

1. Heat the olive oil in a large pot.
2. Slice and cook the leeks for about 10 minutes over a medium heat until golden.
3. Chop up all the vegetables into smallish chunks then add these to the pot. Cover with water, add salt and pepper (and a bay leaf, if you like), bring to the boil and let it simmer for 30-45 minutes.
4. Remove the bay leaf if you’ve used one, then use a hand blender to cream the soup to whatever consistency takes your fancy.

TIP: Serve with crusty bread or make your own garlic croutons with roughly cut French bread lightly tossed in a mix of a little olive oil and finely chopped garlic, spread out on a baking sheet and cooked on a high heat for a few minutes.

Pumpkin soup recipe

An autumn classic, perfect in a mug for fireside relaxing!

Diffculty level: easy 
Prep time: 10 minutes.
Cooking time: 30 minutes

Ingredients (serves 4-6 people)

1. 2kg fresh pumpkin, peeled and cut into chunks
2. 2 medium onions chopped
3. ½ tsp allspice
4. 1 tsp butter

Directions

1. Heat the butter in a large pot.
2. Melt the onions for about 5 minutes over a medium heat, until golden.
3. Add the pumpkin. Add enough water to the pan so the pumpkin is half covered, close the pot and cook for 20 minutes.
4. When it’s cooked through, add the allspice and blend it into a soup using a liquidiser or hand blender.

TIP: If you’re serving this soup for guests, add a rich swirl of cream and finely chopped chives to each serving.

Tuscan five-bean soup recipe

Having friends over for dinner? This simple vegetarian recipe provides a complete meal, and you can make it a few days in advance for really tasty results.

Diffculty level: Medium
Prep time: 15 minutes (plus overnight soaking).
Cooking time: 50 minutes

Ingredients (serves 6-8 people)

1. 75g each of dried borlotti beans, dried red lentils, dried green lentils, dried green split peas, dried small white beans (cannellini or toscanelli), barley
2. 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
3. 1 medium onion, diced
4. 1 medium carrot, diced
5. 1 celery branch, thinly sliced
6. 2 fresh garlic cloves, minced
7. Fresh (or dried) thyme, bay leaves and sage
8. 3 litres water
9. Salt and pepper

Directions

1. Soak the lentils, beans and barley overnight in cold water. (If you’re using pearl barley you won’t need to pre-soak it but it’s not as good for you nutritionally).
2. Rinse the beans, lentils and barley thoroughly under more cold water.
3. In a large pot, cook the vegetables and herbs in olive oil for about 5 minutes.
4. Add your beans, lentils and barley. Then add the water. Bring to the boil and reduce to simmer for about 45 minutes.
5. Remove the stems of the herbs and the bay leaves.
6. Serve with fresh, crusty Italian bread.

TIP Serve the soup at the table, putting out little bowls of grated parmesan (try it mixed with finely chopped basil, delicious), olive oil and freshly crushed salt and pepper mixed together, for guests to top their bread and soup as they like.

Source:supersavvyme.co.uk/food/recipes/article/3-healthy-soup-recipes utm_source=taboola&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=food&utm_content=2001