CHILLED MANGO CHIPOTLE

Purée all ingredients together in a blender or food processor until smooth and creamy. Add more spices to taste and serve cold with a dash of soy yoghurt and garnish. Enjoy!

2 mangos
juice from 1 lime
1/2 tsp ginger powder
dash salt and pepper, to taste
1 tsp chipotle powder
2 C water or vegetable broth

HEARTY ADZUKI BEAN

Bring broth to a boil. Add all remaining ingredients, except almonds and sesame oil, and simmer, covered, for about an hour, or until beans are very soft.

Puree with a handheld or regular blender. If needed, add more water to create your desired consistency. Season to taste.

Drizzle with sesame oil, garnish with some toasted, slivered almonds, and serve.

6 C vegetable broth
1 1/2 C dried adzuki beans, rinsed
1/2 C dried shiitake mushrooms
1 onion, roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 Tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp sugar
1 5cm piece kombu
1/4 C toasted, slivered almonds, for garnish
2 tsp toasted sesame oil, or to taste, for drizzling
Salt and pepper to taste

EASY PUMPKIN with garlic bread

Add oil to a large pot and gently cook onion until soft. Add cumin and curry powder and stir for 30 seconds before adding vegetables. Mix until coated before adding sufficient water to completely cover vegetables.

Simmer until the vegetables are soft, adding seasonings and stock powder to taste. Mix with a hand held mixer or blend in a food processor.

Serve with some homemade garlic bread. Spread on sliced bread, wrap in tin foil and bake in hot oven (180 degrees Celsius) for 15 minutes.

1 Tbsp oil
1 onion, diced
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp curry powder
1/2 pumpkin, peeled, deseeded and cubed
2-3 potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 carrot, cubed
Vegetable stock powder
Salt and pepper to taste 

GARLIC BREAD
2 garlic cloves (minced)
1 Tbsp margarine
1 tsp fresh parsley, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

LEEK AND POTATO

Place potatoes in a large pot, cover with water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook for 10-15 minutes until tender. Drain and set aside.

In a large saucepan over medium heat, sauté oil and leeks until tender. Add garlic and cook for a further minute. Place potatoes and leeks in a food processor with about 3/4 of the broth and blend until smooth before adding fresh herbs. If mixture is too thick, add remaining cup of broth and then process for a further minute.

Return soup to the saucepan and heat, stirring occasionally, until heated through. Season with salt and pepper.

6 potatoes, cubed
2 Tbsp oil
2 leeks, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1L vegetable broth or water and 2 vege stock cubes
1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves
2 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

HEARTY LENTIL BARLEY

Place all ingredients except salt and spinach into a large pot and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the lentils and barley are tender, about one hour. Add salt to taste and spinach, if desired. Cook briefly until spinach is wilted but still bright green.

1 C lentils, rinsed
2 stalks celery, sliced
1/2 C hulled or pearled barley
1/2 tsp oregano
6 C water or vegetable stock
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 onion, chopped
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced or crushed
1/8-1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
2 carrots, sliced
1/2 tsp salt
2-4 C fresh spinach, chopped 

HEARTY BROCCOLI

Melt margarine in a soup pot over medium heat. Sauté onion, celery, and garlic for 5 minutes, until onion is translucent. Add potatoes and three quarters of the broccoli florets. Add enough water to barely cover the veggies. Bring to boil, lower heat, cover and cook 15-20 minutes until tender and soft.

Blend veggies with a hand blender until smooth. Add soy milk and nutritional yeast. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add in remaining florets and cook, uncovered, until florets are soft. Serve.

2 Tbsp margarine
1 onion, diced
1 rib of celery, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
2 heads of broccoli, cut into florets
water
1 C soy milk
1/4 C nutritional yeast
salt and pepper to taste

SIMPLE CHILLED RASPBERRY

Mix everything in a blender until smooth and allow to chill for at least 30 minutes. Sieve if preferred or necessary.

Serve chilled and garnish with coriander and some whole raspberries.

2 C fresh raspberries, rinsed
1/3 C lemon grass, finely chopped
4-5 kaffir lime leaves, finely chopped
1/2 C finely chopped coriander
1 C coconut milk 

ROASTED TOMATO BASIL

Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Arrange cut tomatoes on a large baking tray. Drizzle with first measure of olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Toss until tomatoes are evenly coated, then arrange them cut side up - they should fill the pan completely. Place in oven and roast for 50 minutes. Remove pan from oven and set aside.

Warm remaining olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until soft and slightly golden, about ten minutes. Add garlic and pepper flakes and sauté for another minute. Carefully pour in the roasted tomatoes and juice. Add the basil, thyme, and one cup of water (you may need to add an extra cup if the tomatoes are on the dry side). Simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Blend soup in batches in the blender, pouring finished soup into a clean saucepan (you could strain the soup as you do this to remove any remaining skin or seeds, depending on the strength of your blender).

Serve piping hot, with crackers or chunks of store-bought artisan-style bread.

3kg Roma (plum) tomatoes, cut in half lengthwise
1/4 C plus 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp salt
1/2 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp red pepper flakes
2 C fresh whole basil leaves
1/2 tsp dried thyme

GARLICKY CREAM OF CELERY

Trim 10 celery stalks and dice into 1cm pieces. Trim the remaining stalks, dice finely and set aside.

Heat a tablespoon of margarine in a large soup pot. Add onion and garlic and sauté over moderate heat until the onion is lightly golden. Sprinkle in flour and stir for one minute. Add 1cm diced celery, potatoes and enough water to cover. Bring to boil before adding stock cube, herbs and celery leaves. Simmer over low heat until the vegetables are tender, about 25 minutes. Remove from the heat.

With a slotted spoon, transfer the solid ingredients to a food processor or blender and purée (in batches if necessary) until very smooth. Return to pot on a very low heat. Add enough soy milk to achieve a slightly thickened consistency.

Heat the remaining tablespoon of margarine in a small skillet. Add the reserved celery and sauté over moderate heat until lightly golden. Add to soup before seasoning with salt and pepper. Garnish each serving with celery leaves or some fresh herbs.

12 celery stalks
2 Tbsp margarine
1 onion, chopped
8 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbsp unbleached white flour
3 potatoes, peeled and diced
1 vegetable stock cube
1/4 C fresh parsley and dill, chopped
1/4 C celery leaves, chopped
1 to 1 1/2 C soy milk
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Chopped fresh dill or parsley for garnish

CREAMY SPINACH SWEET POTATO

Heat oil in a saucepan and fry onion until soft. Stir in chilli powder, ground ginger and garlic cloves. Add stock, sweet potatoes and mushrooms and simmer for ten minutes until tender. Add coconut milk and baby spinach and simmer for 2-3 minutes or until the spinach just starts to wilt. Stir in the lemon juice and season. Sprinkle with fresh coriander before serving. 

1 Tbsp oil
1 onion, chopped
1 tsp chilli powder
2 tsp ground ginger
2 garlic cloves, crushed
4 C vegetable stock
750g sweet potato, peeled and diced
250g mushrooms, sliced
400ml coconut milk
225g baby spinach
juice of lemon
fresh coriander

BOK CHOY AND SHITAKE MUSHROOM

Remove the bok choy leaves from the stems. Roughly chop leaves and plunge into a pot of boiling water. Let stand for three minutes and rinse them in cold water. Dice stems and set aside.

Snip stems from the mushrooms and dice. Thinly slice the mushrooms and set aside. In a large bowl, add bok choy stems, mushroom stems, spring onions, garlic, ginger, soy sauce, chilli flakes and bay leaf with the water and bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for one hour.

Strain and reserve watery stock. Discard strained vegetables. In a medium pot with the oil, fry mushrooms for five minutes until crisp and tender. Sprinkle a dash of salt and stir in bok choy leaves. Add stock and return to boil then add tofu and serve.

For variation add a half cup of udon noodles when adding bok choy leaves.

3 bok choy
1 C shiitake mushrooms
1 bunch spring onions, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp fresh ginger, grated
3 Tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp chilli flakes
1 bay leaf
6 C water
1 Tbsp olive oil
salt to taste
100g tofu (firm), cubed

RED LENTIL, CHICKPEA AND CHILLI

Heat a large saucepan and dry-fry the cumin seeds and chilli flakes for one minute until they start to jump around the pan and release their aromas. Add the oil and onion, and cook for five minutes.

Stir in the lentils, stock and tomatoes, then bring to the boil. Simmer for 15 minutes or until the lentils have softened. Blend the soup with a hand held blender or food processor until it is a rough purée and then return to the pan. Add the chickpeas. Heat gently, season well and stir in the coriander.

Finish with a dollop of soy yoghurt and coriander leaves.

2 tsp cumin seeds
large pinch chilli flakes
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 red onion, chopped
140g red split lentils
850ml vegetable stock or water
400g can tomatoes, chopped
1/2 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
small bunch coriander, roughly chopped (save some leaves for garnish)

CREAM OF SPINACH 

In a large saucepan over medium to high heat, sauté onions and spring onions in the apple juice and oil for five minutes, stirring frequently. Add the spinach, parsley and celery and cook for five minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the broth, oats, salt, thyme and pepper and bring to a boil, then lower the heat to medium. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from the heat. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before pureeing in a blender until thick and smooth. Return to the pot to reheat and serve.

1 C onion, minced
1/4 C spring onions, chopped
1/4 C apple juice
2 tsp olive oil
2 C spinach, chopped
1/4 C fresh parsley, chopped
1/4 C celery, chopped
4 C vegetable broth
1/3 C rolled oats
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp white pepper

HEARTY LENTIL

Heat oil in a medium to large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and stir well. Sauté until softened. Add garlic and stir well. Add tomatoes, lentils and vegetable broth.

Add carrot, zucchini, celery, thyme, oregano, and bay leaf. Bring to the boil, before reducing to low heat and simmering for 15 minutes. Remove bay leaf. Add salt and pepper if desired. Serve toasty hot!

CAULIFLOWER

Sauté onions, celery, and leeks in the oil for 15 minutes on medium heat in a large pot. Peel garlic and wrap in aluminium foil with a dash of oil. Roast in oven on a high heat for about 15 minutes.

2 Tbsp oil
1 onion, diced
2 celery stalks, sliced
3 leeks, thinly sliced (just the white parts)
6-10 garlic cloves
2 heads of cauliflower, cut into florets
3 C soymilk
1 C nutritional yeast
salt and pepper to taste

CORN CHOWDER 

Heat the oil in a heavy saucepan. Sauté the onion, capsicum, celery and garlic over medium heat for two minutes. Stir in the potatoes and stock, lower heat, and simmer (covered) over low heat for about 15 minutes or until the potatoes are tender, stirring occasionally.

Mix in the corn kernels, milk and herbs, and simmer for another 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve hot.

1 Tbsp oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 capsicum, finely chopped
1/2 C celery, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
6 potatoes, diced
2 C vegetable stock
2-1/2 C corn kernels
2 C plain soy milk
1/2 tsp dried/fresh sage
1/2 tsp dried/fresh rosemary
1/2 tsp dried/fresh basil
salt and ground black pepper to taste

MUSHROOM AND LEEK

Combine the broth, ginger, and spring onions in a large saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower heat, cover and simmer.

In a sauté pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the leeks and sauté for five minutes, then add the mushrooms and continue sautéing for 3 minutes. Remove from heat and add the vegetables, along with any oil left in the pan, to the soup.

Simmer for 5 minutes or until vegetables are just tender. Adjust seasonings and serve.