If you’re looking for cold-weather comfort food, this roasted root vegetable soup is for you. It’s incredibly easy to make, is ready in under an hour and is packed full of veg!

It’s not a fancy soup – it has no airs and graces or elaborate toppings – but it’s simple, hearty food to warm the soul on a frosty winter’s day. This recipe can be used as a rough guide, using whatever root veg you have in, in whatever ratios you prefer.

Ingredients (serves 6):
3 carrots, peeled
2 parsnips, peeled
500g swede, peeled
1 tsp dried thyme
1 bay leaf, halved
1 onion, roughly chopped
1 leek, sliced
2 celery sticks, roughly chopped
1 large garlic clove, crushed
500ml hot vegetable stock

1. Preheat the oven to 230°C. Cut the carrots, parsnips and swede into even-sized chunks and transfer to a large baking dish. Drizzle with a little olive oil, scatter with the thyme and bay leaf halves and season. Toss well, then roast for 45 mins, stirring halfway through.
2. After 25 mins, heat a glug of olive oil in a large saucepan. Add the onion and cook on a low heat for 5 mins. Add the leek and celery and cook for a further 5-7 mins, until softened. Stir in the garlic, cook for 2 mins more then remove from the heat.
3. Add the roasted root veg to the saucepan, discarding the bay leaf halves. Pour in the stock and 1 ltr boiling water, then use a stick blender to blitz the soup smooth. Return to a low heat to warm through, and stir in a little more boiling water to bring the soup to your preferred thickness. Season to taste, then serve with crusty bread.