Hearty Vegetable Tuscan Chicken Soup

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Every time I make this soup since that fateful day, I am extra careful when blending and serving. And it has taken me this long to photograph it again – I was really scarred by the cleaning up process. But don’t let my associations put you off – this is such a delicious soup and you can spice it in different ways. Go for lime, lemongrass and chilli for an Asian version, or warming Indian spices like I have done here. If you add the spinach towards the end of cooking you will end up with a really vibrant colour and fresher taste.

INGREDIENTS

1-2 tbsp coconut oil or vegetable oil
1 tsp mild curry powder
½ tsp ground cumin
½ tsp ground turmeric
1 large leek, topped and tailed, finely diced
1 medium potato, such as Maris piper, peeled and cubed
1 large courgette (zucchini), cubed
1 green chilli, deseeded and finely diced
240ml | 1 cup hot vegetable stock (I used a Kallo cube)
1x 400g | 14oz can light coconut milk
100-200g | 3.5-7oz fresh spinach
salt and pepper to season
4 slices stale ciabatta, cubed
1-2 tbsp olive oil
½ tsp garlic granules
½ tsp dried herbs (I used Herbs de Provence)
handful crisp spinach leaves to garnish

METHOD

Toss the bread cubes in the garlic granules and herbs. Heat the olive oil in a non-stick pan and then fry the bread cubes, stirring often, until crunchy and a little coloured. Set aside.
Heat the coconut oil in large pot. Add the spices and stir for a minute.
Add the leek, potato, courgette and chilli and stir to coat in the spices. Season well with salt and pepper, cover the pot and sweat the vegetables over low heat for five minutes.
Add the vegetable stock and coconut milk and cook for another 10 minutes or until the potato is fork tender.
Add the spinach and stir. Cook for another 2-3 minutes.
Carefully transfer the soup to a blender, make sure the lid is secure and blend until completely smooth. You may need to do this in batches.
Serve the soup topped with the croutons and a handful crisp spinach leaves.

Source supergoldenbakes.com