IT’S EASY BEING GREEN

Get souped up with this delicious and healthy dish

*Per serving

This vibrant soup is the perfect antidote to festive overload. ‘It will refuel your body and refresh your tastebuds,’ says its creator Anita Bean, a sports dietitian and author of The Vegetarian Athlete’s Cookbook, out this month (Bloomsbury). Packed with vegetables and herbs, this dish offers an easy way to get your five a day. ‘The beauty of the recipe is you can substitute the ingredients for whatever veg you have to hand,’ says Bean.

INGREDIENTS

1 tbsp olive or rapeseed oil 1 onion, finely sliced 1 carrot, sliced 1 small parsnip, diced 600ml vegetable stock 1 bay leaf 50g green beans, topped, tailed and halved 125g leafy green veg such as kale, spring greens or cabbage A handful of torn basil leaves Salt and ground black pepper

METHOD

Heat the olive oil in a heavybased pan over a moderate heat. Add the onion and cook gently for about five minutes, until softened. Add the carrot and parsnip to the pan and continue cooking over a moderate heat for five more minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables soften a little. Add the stock and bay leaf and bring to the boil. Simmer for 10 mins, add the beans and greens and cook for a further five minutes. Remove the bay leaf. Liquidise the soup using a blender. Stir in the basil and season with salt and pepper.

The Vegetarian Athlete’s Cookbook, A 125g serving of kale provides a day’s vitamin A and K requirement. It is also packed with vitamin C, which aids iron absorption. Onions contain biotin, a B vitamin that helps regulate blood sugar. They’re also rich...