Roasted Vegetable Soup

Now we're into the new year, I'm trying to get back into sensible eating habits and a winter favourite is home-made soups.  They're so easy to make and a good way of getting a daily dose of veggies.  I tend to make a little more than I need so I have enough to take to work for lunch the next day.

We had some roast veggies left over after our New Year's Eve dinner, so I thought I'd use them as a soup base.  Here's how I made it:-

• In a medium sized saucepan, fry a shallot or small onion in a little oil until they are slightly brown
• Add a small, finely chopped chilli pepper
• Stir in the cold roast vegetables and break them up a little with a wooden spatula
• Dissolve a stock cube (I used a low salt veggie stock cube) in a pint and a half of boiling water and then add this to the saucepan
• Cover and simmer very gently for about 5 - 10 minutes to allow the flavours to develop.
• Remove from heat and blend ingredients together (I use a small hand-blender, which means you don't need to remove the soup from the pan)
• Add pepper to taste.  You can also stir in some soured cream or a little milk if you want to make the soup creamier
• Serve with crusty bread and enjoy!