Spooky season? More like soupy season. There’s nothing better than a warming seasonal soup for lunch on a chilly day – they’re nutritious, soothing and filling.

From a balsamic roasted tomato soup, to a more complex prawn and carrot noodle soup, these recipes are sure to warm you up from head to toe. They’re great to make in advance, too, so you can batch-make ahead and freeze for a rainy day. 

Prawn and Carrot Noodle Soup

Serves: 4 | Prep time: 10 minutes | Cook time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

1 tbsp rapeseed oil

2 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced

2 tsp ginger, peeled and grated

1 tsp chilli flakes

1 green chilli, sliced

1 stalk of lemongrass, peeled and finely chopped

150g Chantenay carrots, sliced

6 shiitake mushrooms, sliced

A good dash of fish sauce

1 litre of good chicken stock

150g pre-soaked rice noodles

24 prawns, peeled and de-veined

4 spring onions, trimmed and sliced

½ bunch of coriander, chopped

1 tbsp dark soy sauce

1 tbsp sweet chilli sauce

2 limes, juiced

1 tsp sesame oil

Method:

1. Warm the oil in a pan over a medium heat. Add the garlic, ginger, chilli flakes, green chilli and lemongrass. Cook, stirring constantly for about 1 minute. 

2. Add the sliced Chantenay carrots and shiitake mushrooms, add a dash of fish sauce and cook for a further minute. 

3. Add the stock and bring to the boil. Then add the noodles, prawns and spring onion and simmer for 4 minutes. 

4. Remove from the heat and stir in the coriander, soy sauce, sweet chilli sauce, lime juice and sesame oil. 

5. Taste and adjust the seasoning, you may need to add a little more sweet chilli or fish sauce.

Creamy Celery Soup with Stilton Cheese

Serves: 4 (or 6 as a starter) | Prep time: 10 minutes | Cook time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

1 oz butter or margarine 

1 small or ½ medium celeriac, chopped          

1 large leek, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped             

1 whole head of fresh celery with leaves, chopped (reserve some leaf for garnishing)

850ml vegetable or chicken stock  

150ml milk  

75g Stilton cheese

Salt and pepper

For the croutons:

1 small white loaf (1day old), cut into small cubes

2 tbsp olive oil

50g cheddar, grated

Method: 

1. Melt the butter or margarine and add the celeriac. Stir and then sweat for 3-4 minutes. Add the leek and garlic and cook for a further 3-4 minutes and then add the chopped celery and stock. Gently simmer with the lid on for 15 minutes or until the celery is just soft. Remove from the heat and leave to cool.  

2. Liquidise and then sieve if a smoother texture is desired. Stir in the milk and cheese and reheat until the cheese has dissolved, taking care not to let it boil.

3. Garnish with croutons and ½ tsp finely chopped celery leaf. If preferred the cheese can be omitted from the soup and garnished instead with the cheesy croutons for a less intense flavour.

4. For cheesy croutons. Mix the bread cubes, olive oil, and grated cheese in a bowl. Scatter onto a baking tray and cook for 20 minutes at 180°C/350°F/Gas 5. Cook for another 10 minutes if not golden brown. Cool and store in an airtight container for up to a week.

Asparagus and Spinach Soup Topped with Chive Crème Fraîche 

Serves: 4 | Prep time: 10 minutes | Cook time: 15- 20 minutes 

Ingredients:

12 spears of asparagus stems removed and finely chopped

1 tsp olive oil

50g of unsalted butter

1 medium white onion diced

1 clove of garlic crushed

800ml of vegetable stock 

100g of spinach

4 tbsp of crème fraîche (1 tbsp per soup portion)

2 tbsp of freshly chopped chives

Method:

1. Prepare the asparagus by removing the hard stems (keep four of the asparagus heads for garnishing the soup) then finely chop the rest.

2. Place a saucepan on the heat, add a little olive oil and the butter, then add the diced onion and garlic sweat for 5 minutes on a low heat.

3. Now add the chopped asparagus and continue to sweat for another couple of minutes, add the vegetable stock bring to the boil, and simmer for 20 minutes. Add your spinach to the soup and simmer for 2 minutes then remove from the heat and put into a blender and blitz in batches. 

4. Once the soups blended put through a sieve to remove any lumps, mix your crème fraîche with the chopped chives and a touch of salt and pepper to taste. 

Balsamic Roast Tomato Soup

Serves: 5 | Prep time: 15 minutes | Cook time: 25 minutes

Ingredients:

500g Isle of Wight tomatoes 

1 red pepper, chopped

1tbsp rapeseed oil

1tbsp balsamic vinegar

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 onion, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

500ml vegetable stock cube

2 tbsp parsley, chopped, plus leaves to serve

100g ricotta 

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C.

2. Toss the tomatoes and pepper with half the oil in a roasting tin. Roast for 20 minutes, then drizzle over the balsamic vinegar and cook for a further 10 minutes.

3. Heat the rest of the oil in a large pan and fry the garlic, onion and carrot over a low heat for 5 minutes. Add the stock, bring to a simmer and cook for 10-12 minutes, or until the carrot is tender. 

4. Add the tomatoes and peppers to the pan. Cook for 5 minutes, season, then blend using a handheld blender.

5. In a bowl, stir the parsley into the ricotta then whisk until light and fluffy. To serve, divide the soup into bowls and top each bowl with a spoonful of the ricotta mixture.

Shallot, Pumpkin and Red Pepper Soup

Serves: 4 | Prep time: 15 minutes | Cook time: 35 minutes

Ingredients:

For the soup:

4 red peppers, deseeded and cut into quarters

30g butter

1 tbsp rapeseed oil

6 shallots, diced peeled

750g pumpkin, peeled and diced into 2 cm pieces

1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped

4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed

Leaves of one sprig of thyme

1.2 litre good vegetable stock

100ml double cream (optional)

Sea salt and black pepper

For the candied shallots:

250g unsalted butter

¼ tsp of cumin seeds

8 (250g) shallots, peeled and sliced

¼ tsp ground cumin

¼ tsp paprika

1 tsp honey 

To serve:

2 tsp chives, finely chopped

30g pumpkin seeds, toasted

120ml low fat crème fraîche

Method: 

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas Mark 6.

2. Place the peppers skin side up, on a baking sheet and roast in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, until the skins are charred. Remove from the oven and place in a bowl. Cover with cling film and leave to cool. Once cool, peel off the skins, and reserve the flesh. 

3. Meanwhile, melt the butter with oil in a large, heavy-based saucepan. Add the shallots, pumpkin and red chilli, season with sea salt and black pepper and sweat the vegetables for 5-10 minutes without browning. Add the garlic and thyme and cook on a low heat for a further minute. Pour in the vegetable stock, bring to the boil and simmer gently for 15 minutes. Add in the red peppers and cook for a further 5 minutes.

5. For the crispy shallots melt the butter in a small pan over a medium heat, add the cumin seeds and shallots and fry until soft. Add the ground cumin and paprika and cook the shallots for a further minute, stirring the shallot mixture all the time to prevent burning. Fry until caramelised for approx. 1-2 minutes. Remove from the heat and season with sea salt and stir in the honey.

6. Blend the soup in a food processor or with a hand blender and adjust the seasoning to taste. Return to the pan, if a little thick add more stock and if you wish, stir in the cream. Gently reheat the soup and ladle into warmed bowls. Place a spoonful of low-fat crème fraîche in each and sprinkle with the chives, toasted pumpkin seeds and candied shallots.