This soup is one that has a special meaning for me. It’s actually a relatively recent addition to my soup repertoire. When my son passed away, a friend of my mother’s made a tomato and carrot soup for us. It was rich and comforting and exactly what we needed. Everyone at the table asked for seconds. I was not in a good frame of mind to be asking people for recipes, so I came up with this version myself.

It has a rich colour and a superb flavour. I often team it up with Cheddar scones. It’s simple, but very tasty. It’s also a vegan soup, as long as you make sure that the stock you use is vegan or make your own vegetable stock from scratch. For some strange reason a lot of the companies that make vegetable stock seem to feel a need to put whey solids in, so just watch for that if you are cooking a vegan version.

Ingredients

• 8 large tomatoes cut in half and roasted slowly in the oven (if you don’t have time they are fine not roasted - the soup just is not as flavourful - it’s also fine with a couple of cans of chopped tomatoes if you are really pressed for time.
• 5-6 medium carrots diced finely
• 2 sticks of celery chopped
• 1 brown onion chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic
• fresh oregano chopped - about 2 tspns ( 1 tspn dried)
• 1/2 tspn cinnamon
• 1/2 to 1 tspn chilli powder. (optional)
• 4 cups of vegetable stock (less for thicker soup - more for thinner)
• salt and fresh black pepper to taste

1. Cook the onion and celery in a little oil until the onion is transparent.

2. Add the carrots and cook slightly

3. Add the garlic and cook a little ( do not let this brown - or alternatively you can cut a whole head of garlic and roast with the tomatoes)

4. Pour in the stock add the tomatoes and throw in your herbs and spices

5. Simmer gently until vegetables are soft

6. Purée in a food processor or with a stick blender. Reheat gently- Serve with Cheddar scones.