Roasted tomato and red lentil soup
Serves 4
If you don’t have time to roast the tomatoes, you can always use a can of chopped plum tomatoes instead. Serve with fresh basil in with a half teaspoon of udo oil. I skip the salt and stir in a half teaspoon of miso after it is in the bowl (gives it a more rounded taste, a bit of salt and live bacteria).
It is equally good pureed or left chunky.  Freezes well.


3 tbsp olive oil 600g large vine-ripened tomatoes, halved 1/2 teaspoon of Miso and freshly ground black pepper (Miso rounds out the taste and also live bacteria) 1 large onion, chopped 2 small garlic cloves, finely chopped 2 celery sticks, chopped 2 tsp ground cumin ½ tsp cayenne pepper 140g red lentils, rinsed 850ml vegetable stock

1 Preheat the oven to 220C/Gas 7. Pour the oil into a roasting tray and heat in the oven until almost smoking. Carefully tip the tomatoes on to the roasting tray, then toss to coat in the oil. Season well, then roast for 20-25 minutes, stirring halfway, until the tomatoes have softened slightly.
2 Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, sweat the onion, garlic and celery in the olive oil with some seasoning for 6-8 minutes until soft. Sprinkle over the cumin and cayenne pepper and sauté for 1-2 minutes to cook out the spices.
3 Remove the tomatoes from the oven and tip them into the saucepan, along with any juices from the roasting tray. Stir in the lentils, then pour in the vegetable stock and bring to the boil. Cook over a high heat for 10 minutes, then lower to a gentle simmer for about 20 minutes until the lentils are soft.
4 Remove the pan from the heat, cool the soup slightly, then blend in batches until smooth. Return to the heat to warm through gently and check for seasoning.