Vegetable, quinoa and chilli soup

Colder weather always makes me crave soup and after a week in England of festive excess I needed to eat something really nutritious. I am a huge soup fan; Mushroom, Minestrone, Potato and leek, Tomato Moroccan, Thai curry whatever! If it's flavoursome and piping hot and preferably served with some lovely baked bread, I'm happy.

This soup was very much predicated by what veg I could find at Netto (German cheapie supermarket) this morning and bits of pieces that needed to be used up. I went to buy a load of vegetables to make picalilli (recipe to follow) and onion jam so the issue was also how much I could carry on my bicycle!

In an ideal world I would have used fresh corn but I have never seen it in Leipzig. Or fresh peas. Much of the produce here is very much seasonal and this time of year focused on root vegetables. I bought a kilo of carrots for 60c (88c AUD), some tins, parsley and bits and pieces.

                          

I bought the abode chilli flakes along with some allspice (pimento) in the UK as I have not been able to find either here. This does not mean that they do not exist here, more I haven't seen them.

Ingredients

• 1 leek
• 1/2 onion 
• 3 cloves garlic
• 3 carrots
• 3 medium potatoes
• 1/2 cup quinoa
• 1 can of peas (drained)
• 1 can of corn (drained)
• 1.5 litres vegetable stock
• Big handful of fresh parsley
• 1 tablespoon abode chilli flakes (or to taste) 

                                         
Instructions

1. Chop vegetables into chunks (if you like your soup chunky rather than pureed, you can of course dice the pieces smaller and dice the parsley)
2. Fry onion, garlic and leeks in a heavy based soup pot until lightly cooked
3. Add root vegetables and parsley and stir until lightly browned
4. Add peas, corn, quinoa, vegetable stock and cook until vegetable are soft. If you want a thinner soup, add more stock by all means.
5. Ad parsley and chilli and cook another 2 mins
6. Allow to cool a little and puree
7. Serve with a sprinkling of chilli flakes and sea salt.

I have included this recipe in No Croutons required's monthly challenge, hosted for January by Food and Spice and Lisa's Kitchen.