Utterly yummy soup

While browsing you tube this afternoon I found a lovely vegetable soup recipe. I have cooked a huge panful and Tony and I had it for tea with a chunk of crusty bread. If you fancy giving it a try here's what I did. Of course you can add whatever takes your fancy or leave out something if you aren't keen.

2 stalks of celery finely chopped

1 medium onion finely chopped

1 clove of garlic finely chopped

1 veggie stock pot dissolved in 600ml water (the label says 500ml but I find it a bit strong when you add in all the other seasonings)

I used a veggie stock pot thingy rather than a stock cube but use whatever you have to hand

1 cup of lentils (soak for about fifteen minutes before rinsing and using in this recipe)

1 cup of dried  rice

Approximately  200g of potatoes peeled and dice quite small

two medium carrots grated

1 tin of sweetcorn (use frozen if you prefer)

.5 tsp chilli powder 

1 bay leaf

4 large basil leaves torn into little pieces

1tsp dried oregano 

several grinds of black pepper

Salt to taste

Place the stock into a pan and add the celery, onion and garlic. Bring to the boil and then simmer for a few minutes. Then add everything else but not the sweetcorn or salt to the pan and simmer for twenty minutes. Add the sweetcorn and simmer for another five minutes or so. Adjust the seasoning to taste and stir well.  Serve with a slice of buttered crusty bread... If you are only cooking for one or two people you will have plenty left and it will develop over the next few days and will become even more delicious. I plan to leave the bay leaf in the pan so that it continues to enrich the flavour.

We don't often have dessert but for a change I mashed a banana into about 120ml of yoghurt. Then I skinned and finely chopped a flat peach and stirred that into the yoghurt with a drizzle of honey. I gave it a good stir then popped it into the fridge to chill. It was plenty for both of us and tasted absolutely lovely. Tony and I are feeling very well fed and we didn't miss having meat at all.