Roast carrot, parsnip & orzo soup

 Our winter has been cold & this week the temperatures have barely made it to 3c. It is definitely comfort food weather & soups are always on the menu. 

I love roast root vegetables - carrots, parsnips, butternut, onions, sweet potatoes, swedes etc. Roasting the vegetables really caramelises the flavours & a large tray of roasted vegetables lasts at least 2 meals then the remains are made in to a thick & nourishing soup. It takes a few minutes to boil it up in some additional vegetable stock, season, blend & serve with homemade croutons or bubbly cheese toasties.  

I had roasted carrots & parsnips from supper, & coming back in after visiting some snowdrops, we needed something hot & nourishing. 

After boiling, blitzing & seasoning I decided to add some orzo to it to give it substance without the bread. 

I poured some in, stirred it & added a bit more water then gave it regular stirs for about 10 minutes until the orzo was al dente. Seasoned with black pepper & served. 

What a hearty soup, a little goes a long way & perfect for a winters day. 

What is your favourite soup? Inspire me please. Thank you for stopping by, it is always appreciated. 

Dee 🥣🥫☃️❄️🥶

A warming winter soup

 Winter has suddenly arrived, we woke to falling snow. I love to take a snow walk around my local space  to enjoy the change the snow brings as the familiar looks different & it becomes very quiet too. 

It is soup weather - fortunately last night I did a large tray of roast vegetables - I cut a whole butternut in to slices, removed the pips from the section that had it & cut them slices in to blocks. I did not peel it because the skin is good fibre & it softens as it cooks. 

I cut up a whole white onion in to smallish bits, added it to the tray. I peeled 3 large carrots & cut these in half then in to chunks too. Drizzled it all with olive oil, sprinkled over sweet paprika (my favourite spice with oven veg), garlic & pepper. 

I covered it with foil & roasted it for about 40 min then uncovered it to caramelise the onion & veg. It was served hot alongside local sausages, mash & aubergine too. 

I knew I would have vegetables for soup  & another meal too (we love roast vegetables) so it is a good way to do it. 

This is how I turn it in to a quick & nutritious soup. 

I added 1 stock cube to boiling water in a pan, added a few heaped serving spoons of the roast veg. 

I brought it all to the boil, covered it while I made an open toasty to go with it. 

The small baguette was sliced in half, spread with tomato sauce that was seasoned with garlic & pepper, the sliced sausage arranged on top, then grated cheese to top it off & under the grill to bubble away. 

The soup was blitzed with a stick blender to a  smooth-ish consistency, a spoon of mascarpone cheese stirred through it then put in to bowls to enjoy. These soup bowls with lids keep the soup warm & they are a perfect size too. 

It was absolutely delicious & nutritious after our brisk walk in the snow. Winter is soup season, so enjoy. What is your favourite soup recipe? Please share, 

Dee