Recipe of the week – Tomato soup

This is great eaten with crusty bread. It freezes beautifully too.

Serves 6

• 2 onions, chopped

• 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped or pressed through a garlic press (optional)

• 1 leek, washed, trimmed and chopped

• 2 large carrots, chopped

• 2 tins of tomatoes (don’t get the ones which are in herbs)

• 1 tablespoon of caster sugar

• 1 pint of chicken stock (from a cube is fine)

• ½ pint of milk

• 1 tablespoon of oil

Add the oil, onions, garlic, leek and carrots into a large pan. Cook on high for one minute stirring constantly. Cover the pan then reduce the heat down to low and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Next add the tomatoes and the sugar into the pan and cook on high for five minutes, again stirring constantly.

Now add the stock then bring everything to a simmer and cook uncovered for about an hour. Test to see if the vegetables are cooked. If not simmer for another 10 – 15 minutes.

Put the soup in a blender. You’ll need to do this a couple of times so pour the blended soup into a clean pan.

Loosen the puréed soup with the milk and put back on the heat until the soup is hot.

If you prefer a clearer soup, after blending, sieve the soup to remove the bits then add the milk as before.