Sandra’s carrot and lentil soup

Here’s a recipe submitted by one of our ace Facebook followers, Sandra. She says, ‘We’ve experienced times when money was very tight as we were unemployed for five and a half years in the past, with a young family. This soup is both cheap and healthy, and it’s quick and easy to make.’ Thanks, Sandra – sounds delicious!

Preparation time: 10 mins
Cooking time: 30-35 mins
Serves: 6
Total cost: £1.04

Ingredients
1 tbsp oil
1 tsp ground cumin
Pinch of chilli flakes
1 onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, crushed
200g carrots, peeled and diced
400g potatoes, peeled and diced
2 sticks of celery, chopped
150g red lentils
1 litre of veg or chicken stock
125ml milk (I use semi-skimmed)
Black pepper to taste

Method

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan with the cumin powder and chilli flakes for a couple of minutes, before adding the onion and garlic. Fry until softened.
2. Add the carrots, potatoes, celery and lentils. Give everything a good stir.
3. Add the stock and milk, bring to the boil and simmer for 15 minutes.
4. Remove the pan from the heat and use a stick blender to carefully blend the mixture until smooth. If you don't have a blender, you can mash it using a potato masher – not quite as smooth but still tasty.
5. Enjoy with bread or toast!

*Prices from Tesco, correct at time of publishing