Get the pot on to get healthy! 

Mission Nutrition Blog - 13th June 2011

With the cold arriving, the only people you see excited about the winter months are those eagerly awaiting the ski season (that would be me!!). For everyone else, it seems like a very easy time to start hibernating. Whether you love it or hate it, winter is here and despite the appeal of creamy hot chocolates (with chocolate fish on the side!) and double helpings of dinner to satisfy your hunger needs, if you want to keep your nutrition on track (and keep off those unwanted winter kilos) it is time to hit the soup pan!

At a family lunch last weekend, whilst tucking into a delicious veggie soup lovingly prepared by my in-laws to be, we started discussing good old homemade soups and stews. What a fabulous way to get in all the healthy things you need - veggies in all shapes and sizes, and pulses. Soups not only make CHEAP healthy lunches, dinner and snacks – but they are also a fabulous way to use up the odds and ends of veggies you have.

My challenge to you is to make a BIG batch of soup every weekend.

Use different veggies, pulses (lentils, chickpeas, kidney beans, butter beans and such like!) and a low salt stock of your choice! It will not only make fab lunch at the weekend, but you will have enough for lunches for the week, a healthy afternoon snack or a quick dinner. You have the power to be healthy this winter… USE YOUR PANS. Prepping for a soup takes between 5-8mins (I have been timing mine) and cook away with only a few stirs needed. If you have a stick whizz (or hand blender) you can make thick blended soups in minutes.

Here is my current favourite veggie soup recipe:

• ½ pumpkin – chopped into 1 inch chunks
• 1 small cauliflower – chopped into 4 bits
• x2-3 onions – peeled and chopped into quarters
• 4-5 large carrots – peeled and chopped into big chunks
• Low salt chicken stock – 6-8 cups (or homemade if you have it)

Pop everything into a pan – cook until veggies are soft over a medium heat and blend with a stick whizz. Add a drained can of chickpeas after blending for a more filling soup!