Souper powers

This is the perfect soup for a blusterous night by the fire. I ladle it into mugs and serve it with hunks of hot sourdough from Bread Nation or Sceal Bakery. The reverie is palpable, like a toddler with a Twix.

Really great soup relies on home-made stock. It’s insanely easy to make, and not even time-consuming, because you leave it alone to bubble on the stove for hours. As soon as you spot veggies on special offer (celery, onions, peppers, ginger, carrots) load up your shopping basket and prep some stock at home. I even find bunches of parsley on their sell-by date for 10 cent, and I either parachute it into my stock pot, or freeze it for next week’s batch.

To bash out a stock, gently simmer a pile of veg for a few hours, and strain. Mushrooms make a meaty, umami stock if you’re staying vegan.

Otherwise, parachute some chicken bones or Parmesan rinds into your stockpot and cook them for longer (say six to 18 hours). You can even use the bones from Sunday’s roast leg of lamb.

The nourishing combo of collagen, amino acids, electrolytes and minerals from bone broth makes it a supercharged elixir for sports injuries and squeaky dance moves. Even the Hemsley sisters swear by their daily dose of bone broth for healthier skin and glossier hair. There’s no need for boxercise or Botox — just a good stockpot, my friends. And a boxset. Now there’s a New Year’s resolution I can stick to.