Beetroot, cumin and walnut soup

 I have been threatening to do it for a little while, but I have finally started a food blog.

My reasoning of starting this blog is because I love to cook. I find it relaxing almost to the point of therapeutic. It is also excellent payment when a kindly soul does you a favour or offers a place to rest your weary head. And I love the satisfaction of cooking a good meal and enjoying it with friends. I also started this because I think I was starting to drive my friends crazy with a constant stream of Facebook updates about how amazing my dinner was...

If you know me then you might be aware of my massive collection of recipe books. This is all for show however, as I'm not one to follow recipes. Don't get me wrong, I love reading them, as I speak I have two cookbooks in bed with me now (hello, Hugh Fernley-Whittingstall) but I just can't stick to a recipe. I'm what you may call an intuitive cook (or more accurately, throw-it-in-and-hope-for-the-best cook), but more often than not it works.

I am vegetarian so expect practically everything to be so. I also don't have much dairy so some recipes may use soya milk but you can obviously substitute this for normal milk, or whichever alternative you wish.

A few days ago I made a lovely beetroot, cumin and walnut soup. I love soup. It is so warming and nutritious, and after the Christmas binge some virtuous eating will never go amiss. Fresh beetroot is great at this time of year, although I had some pre-cooked beetroot in the cupboard so that is what I used.

This was an adaptation from a salad recipe from Hugh Fernley-Whittingtall's new book 'River Cottage Veg' (I mentioned him above, no I definitely would NOT want the real thing in my bed)... I thought the ingredients sounded earthy and warming, which was very close to the truth after trying it.

Beetroot, Cumin and Walnut soup

1 large onion, chopped finely
Olive oil
Vegetable stock
4 cooked beetroots, chopped (NOT in vinegar)
1tsp whole cumin seeds
Handful walnut pieces
1-2 garlic cloves
Soya milk (or alternative)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Heat the olive oil and gently fry the onion and garlic for 10-15 minutes, or until they turn translucent (this is boring but makes a huge difference to the taste)
2. Heat a dry frying pan and toast the cumin seeds and walnut pieces until they begin to brown and start giving off an aroma. Once they have browned put them to the side.
3. Add the beetroot to the onion mixture and stir, browning the beetroot slightly to give a deeper flavour
4. Add the cumin and walnuts to the pan and mix
5. Add enough stock to cover the mixture and leave to cook for 5 minutes
6. Blend the soup (I use a hand blender). It should be quite a thick consistency.
7. Slowly add the milk to achieve the consistency you wish. This should lighten the soup and give it a wonderful red/purple colour.
8. Heat the soup back up, and serve with crusty bread