This soup recipe came about when a couple of my foodie friends and I went out for lunch, when we were all between jobs. We went to a little cafe which had the most generous selection of cakes and yet, the surprise was the soup. We loved it so much we asked for the recipe and they kindly gave it to us, with the full on industrial portions! Below, I have the much more reasonably sized recipe with some adaptations of my own. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

This soup has a lovely sweetness from the carrots and is best with a slice of fresh bread and butter. It also freezes well, so I usually make double the recipe and freeze it in portions.

• 1 small Onion (or half a large onion), peeled and quartered
• Olive Oil
• 250g Red Lentils, washed and drained
• 300g Carrots, peeled and trimmed
• 2 1/2 pints (5 1/2 cups) Vegetable Stock
• 1/2 tin Chopped Tomatoes
• 2 Tbsp Curry Powder
• 1 tsp Turmeric
• 2 (1 tsp) Garlic Cloves, minced
• 1 tsp Garam Masala
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp ground Ginger

In a blender add the onion pieces and pulse until finely chopped. Set aside. In a large saucepan warm the olive oil over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and sauté until soft and translucent, being careful not to let them brown.

Whilst the onion is cooking, use the blender to chop the carrots. You should end up with small, evenly sized coarse pieces. Add this to the softened onion in the saucepan and saute for a few minutes. Add the lentils, the tinned tomato, vegetable stock and spices. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the lentils have cooked through.

Serve with a slice of fresh bread.

Soup will keep for 3 days in the fridge, alternately freeze once cooled.