Split Pea Soup

This is fab just as it is, which is why I labelled it as vegetarian, but since I still had some gammon in the freezer I added that and had a meaty version

Ingredients (serves 4)
250g Yellow Split Peas
1 onion, diced
1 leek, sliced
1 carrot, diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 litre vegetable stock
1 tsp thyme
2 tsp sunflower oil
150g roast gammon, cubed (optional)

* heat the oil in a large pan and add the onion, leek and carrot. Cook for around 5 minutes then add the garlic and cook for a further minute
* stir in the split peas, stock and thyme
* cover and simmer for 1 hour
* if using gammon, stir it in about 10 minutes before the end of the cooking time.

Nutritional info
Calories: 236, Fat: 6.4g, Carbs: 26g, Protein: 19.1g

Parsnip and Leek soup

Leek and Potato is a classic soup combo, but I don't think potato really adds anything flavour-wise. Parsnip, on the other hand, is lovely so since I had some in the fridge I thought this would make a good soup.

Ingredients
3 large parsnips
1 leek
1 onion
1 clove of garlic
85g pearl barley
1 vegetable stock cube

* peel and chop the veg
* heat a little oil in a large pan and fry the onion and leek for a couple of minutes
* Add the parsnip and barley, cover with water (a couple of pints) and add the stock cube plus any herbs etc
* simmer for 45 minutes or until the veg is cooked and the barley softened.

Leek and Potato Soup

I always said that I hated soup, but lately I've realised that what I hate is 'cream of ...' soup, or any soup which has been blitzed completely smooth. Homemade soup with lots of chunky veg in it is actually pretty good and has the advantage of being cheap to make. I forsee a lot of soup in my immediate future.

Ingredients (serves 3-4)
2 leeks, sliced
1 onion, sliced
1 clove garlic, chopped
450g potatoes, peeled and chopped
100g pearl barley
1 litre vegetable stock
Herbs, pepper etc to season

* heat 1tsp oil in a large pan and saute the leek, onion and garlic for a couple of minutes
* add the stock, potato and barley and season
* bring to the boil then reduce heat and simmer for about an hour

Spicy butternut Squash and pumpkin soup

Ingredients

300g butternut squash, peeled and chopped
150g pumpkin, peeled and chopped
2 carrot, peeled and chopped
Onion, sliced
1 litre vegetable stock 
40g pearl barley
1/2 tsp lazy chilli
1/2 tsp paprika
Herbs
Salt/pepper
Sunflower oil

* mix the squash, pumpkin and carrot with 1 tsp oil in a roasting tin with some herbs eg rosemary and thyme
* roast at 180C for around 25 minutes
* Meanwhile heat 1tsp oil in a large pan and fry the onion for a few minutes until softened
* add the stock and pearl barley, plus chilli and paprika
* when the veg have roasted add them to the soup and simmer for a further 30 minutes.
* season with salt and pepper to taste

Chicken soup

Not exactly a recipe, more of a method. This is a great way to get an extra meal out of a chicken. How meaty your soup ends up depends on how much is left on the carcass. The one I used today was a small chicken with not much meat left do it's more of a chicken flavoured vegetable soup.

Ingredients
1 chicken carcass
Water
Whatever veg you have in the fridge or freezer
Herbs
A couple of big handfuls of pearl barley

* put the chicken carcass in a pan and cover with water. Season well, bring to the boil and cook for around half an hour.
* Drain the liquid off into a bowl, retaining the chicken
* chop up your chosen veg. I used carrot, parsnip, onion, garlic and sweetcorn
* return the stock to the pan. Add the veg and pearl barley. Add whatever herbs and seasoning you fancy.
* pick over the chicken carcass and remove any meat. Add the meat to the soup.
* simmer for an hour, or until everything is cooked