The sun may be peaking it’s way out of the clouds this May, but that doesn’t mean no rainy days ahead. When the weather’s got us down, there’s nothing better than a comforting homemade soup.

Maggie, who works at Clean Slate, has a delicious vegan soup that can keep the weather blues away. Better yet, the cost per person is around £1.50!

Recipe

Serves 2-4 people

Equipment: A sharp knife, chopping board, saucepan, peeler (optional), hand blender (optional) or potato masher.

Ingredients:

• 500g carrots, diced.

• 2 cloves garlic, chopped.

• 2 sticks celery, chopped.

• 1 whole leek, sliced (or one whole onion peeled and chopped).

• 3 teaspoons of ground coriander (15g). (Note: A 35g jar of ground coriander costs around £1.00 and will provide for two batches of this soup).

• 2 tablespoons of oil (vegetable/sunflower or olive oil)

• 750ml veg stock (or 1 veg stock cube dissolved in 1 and a 1/4 pint of boiling water).

Method:

1. Add the two tablespoons of oil to the saucepan, fry the onion/leek, and garlic until soft. Add the chopped carrots and cook for 5 minutes. Add the coriander powder and fry for a further 5 minutes on a low heat.

2. Add the vegetable stock and cook until the carrots are soft.

3. When the carrots are cooked/soft, blend with a hand blender or mash to a smooth consistency.

If it is too thick, add a little more water or stock, bring back to the boil and season with salt and pepper if required.

For some extra benefits, add some plant based protein like white beans. Maggie’s favourite are butter beans, but any will work. Blending them in the soup can add a creamier texture, and for those bean-haters, they will hardly notice.

Image: Dani Vincek / Shutterstock