Asparagus & Pea Soup

Some soup on the menu today! Asparagus and peas, simmered in vegetable stock and thickened with potatoes. This soup is perfect as a lunch time pick-me-up or would work well as starter. 

Like the other soups I've posted, this is great served with a slice or two of Weight Watchers whole meal bread and a little low fat butter, or 2 slices of wheaten bread such as Mc Cambridges. A couple of Ryvita crisp bread also go very well as an alternative.

The following recipe makes two lunch portions or four starter portions.

Ingredients

• 5g / 1 teaspoon of low fat butter spread

• 100g onion. Peeled and chopped

• 200g asparagus. Washed, woody ends removed and roughly chopped

• 100g peas. Fresh or frozen are both fine

• 200g Potatoes. Washed and roughly sliced

• 2 pints of vegetable stock. Made with 2 stock cubes. Low sodium cubes preferably

• 1 teaspoon of thyme. Fresh or dried

• Juice of half a lemon

• A good twist of black pepper and a little salt if needed

• A small bunch of parsley plus a little more for garnish 

Method

1. Heat a pot over a medium to high heat and add the butter spread. When it's bubbling, add the onion, peas and asparagus. Fry gently for 5-10 minutes until softened, but not coloured. 
2. Then, add the stock, potatoes and herbs and stir to combine. Bring the mixture to the boil, then reduce the heat and let it simmer for approximately 20 minutes. 
3. Add the lemon juice and black pepper and taste to check the seasoning and add a little salt if needed.
4. Add the parsley, remove from the heat and blitz the mixture with a hand blender.
5. Transfer the soup to bowls, garnish with the remaining parsley and serve.