food hits and misses

By now it should be fairly obvious that I'm a fan of soup. This one tastes fantastic, and has the sort of silky texture that you normally only get from adding loads of cream. Despite that, it's very light, and would be perfect as a starter or for a late supper. Garnish with grated parmesan or a dollop of yoghurt for a bit of extra zing.

Spinach and broccoli soup

1 tbspn olive oil
1/2 tspn cracked pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
2 leeks, chopped
250g spinach, chopped
2 heads broccoli
1 potato, peeled and cubed
4 cups vegetable stock

Method

Heat the oil in a heavy based saucepan or stockpot. Saute the leek until softened. Add the pepper and garlic, and continue cooking until the garlic is fragrant. Add the chopped spinach (in batches if using fresh), broccoli, potato and stock. Cover and simmer until the potato is cooked - around 20 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Blend on high speed using a stick mixer.