CELERY - celery, carrot and lentil soup - September

Celery patch in the garden

Celery, carrot and lentil soup

Carrots give a slightly sweet edge to this thick, smooth soup, which contains delicious pockets of melted blue cheese. All you need with it is some crusty bread to make a satisfying and nutritious main course.

Ingredients
1 ½ tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, roughly chopped
1 ts cumin
1 ½ cups split red lentils
1.25 litres of water
2 cups salt reduced vegetable stock
4 large carrots, sliced
1 head of celery (about 500g), sliced, some of the leaves reserved for garnish
1/3 cup (50g) crumbled blue cheese
1/3 cup (50g) snipped fresh chives
Pepper to taste

Preparation
1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over a low heat, add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until softened but not browned. Add cumin and cook for 2 minutes.
2. Tip the lentils into the pan and pour in the water and vegetable stock. Bring to the boil. Add the carrot and celery. Bring back to the boil and simmer for about 40 minutes or until the lentils and vegetables are very tender.
3. Puree the soup and re-heat until the soup is piping hot but not boiling. Remove the pan from the heat.
4. Stir in the blue cheese and chives. Serve, and season with pepper and garnish with celery leaves.

Health points
*Lentils do not need to be soaked before cooking. They are a good source of protein, starchy carbohydrate, fibre and B vitamins.
*Celery contains potassium, a mineral that helps to regulate fluid balance in the body, and therefore helps in the prevention of high blood pressure. It also contains a compound called phthalide, which may aid in lowering blood pressure.