Easy broccoli, zucchini and lentil soup

Now that the weather is getting cooler, it's tempting to have a yummy warm lunch or dinner to escape the chill. I am also in the unique situation that I don't have a microwave or oven, but I do have a stove top and a slow cooker. So for me, cold weather means stews or soups!

I'll be honest, I'm not an avid soup maker, but I love that it's an easy lunch or dinner, it can last for days, and it's a great way to get in a whole variety of veggies, particularly leftover veggies or those now in season. Without really knowing what I was going to do, last Saturday I went to my local Richmond farmers market and came away with two heads of broccoli, three zucchinis and a delicious loaf of seedy bread - so I figured I could make broccoli and zucchini soup!

I then did what any non-soup-maker would do, and googled a recipe. I found this soup recipe that sounded like a good base and pretty easy, I just wanted to make some tweaks of my own. My main issues with it were that I don't really like onion (don't ask me why, I don't think I'm fructose intolerant, I just don't like cutting it up or having it in anything I make, but I'll have it in other people's dishes...!). I also wanted a have protein source in there so it could be a complete (vegetarian) meal in itself and I knew I had dried lentils in the cupboard to use up. Also I didn't have spinach, mint or lemon, but I do have a massive parsley plant growing in my front garden, so this was a perfect way to use it up!

So, with that in mind, see the recipe I came up with below that was delicious, super easy, great with the seedy bread, and even my husband, an avid meat-eater, loved how much it filled him up and he took it for lunch at work today.

BROCCOLI, ZUCCHINI AND LENTIL SOUP

Makes 6-8 serves.

1-2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 medium sized broccoli, chopped to bite size pieces (including the stalk)

3 medium sized zucchinis, chopped to 1cmx1cm pieces

1 cup dried lentils

1.5L vegetable stock

2 cups loosely packed parsley

Natural yoghurt (to serve)

Grainy bread (to serve)

Extra EVOO (for bread)

Method:

1. Heat EVOO in a large saucepan on medium-high heat. Add garlic and cook until fragrant (not long).

2. Add broccoli and zucchini, cook for about 2 minutes.

3. Add the stock, and the lentils, and ensure veg and lentils are covered with water.

4. Bring to the boil, then reduce heat to simmer and cook uncovered for about 12-15 minutes, until broccoli is soft.

5. Spoon 2 cups of mixture into a blender or magimix and add parsley. Ensure an opening is left to allow heat to escape, then blend until desired consistency.

6. Transfer to your serving dish or storage container.

7. Repeat with another 2 cups of the soup mixture.

NOTE: if it's looking too watery for you, pour the saucepan mixture through a strainer before blending to remove the water, or use a spoon with holes in it to to spoon the veggies into the magimix, leaving the water behind.

8. Repeat with the rest of the soup mixture in small batches, adding them to first lot of blended soup. Stir well to ensure the parsley is mixed through the whole batch.

9. Spoon soup into bowls, and serve with a dollop of natural yoghurt on top, and toasted grainy bread drizzled with EVOO.

I'd love to hear your comments below if you liked it, or didn't, or your own alterations and soup recipes!

Thank you Better Homes and Gardens for the use of your recipe, and the lovely Gleedell St Market for the veggies and bread.