UPDATED: This is actually an updated version of my 5 Simple Soups for One post, originally written back in 2018 but here I am again in need of some nutritional TLC. I am also hugely saddened to say that Grassroots has ceased to trade and I am yet to find another crusty roll like Andrea’s but by heck I’ll keep looking.
The idea for my 5 Simple Soups for One came about because currently I am not Rebecca, at the moment I am a hamster stuck in a wheel, a tired, unkempt hamster devoid of nutritional value self diagnosed with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) with a poor diet, sluggish, spotty, damaged nails and the return of the dreaded reflux – poor hamster! Oh wait, that’s me I’m talking about!
Cheerful paragraph to open with that?
I’ve had a little epiphany in the fact that to be more present, have more energy and be strong enough to look after my families needs, I need to be mentally and physically better in myself and lead by example.
You bloody liar! I can count three, no four people who have said exactly that to you recently.
Okay, okay, so it wasn’t an epiphany, I just started listening and accepted the advice and agreed with it; is that better?
I guess so!
Childhood memories of home made soup
Anyway, back to the simple soups for one! I actually really like soup, us girls grew up on what we fondly nicknamed ‘gruel’ it was a simple chicken soup made with the carcass of a chicken, boiled, picked, strained and then packed with any veg available, blended, chicken meat thrown back in, seasoned and tah-dah; Gruel!
it didn’t seem to matter what mum put in that soup it always tasted the same, thick, hearty, delicious warming chicken (gruel) soup.
My kids don’t like it (sigh), the husband isn’t keen (bigger sigh) so when I do make it on very rare occasions I freeze a gazillion tubs of the stuff, or have been known to give some to my sister. With my light bulb moment I decided to sod the family and make myself some delicious soups for one, jar them up and eat one-a-day either for lunch or dinner while they tuck into their same-ole, same-ole dinners that I’ve resigned myself to cook to keep the peace, appease the sensory issues and ensure that the diabetic one ACTUALLY eats her dinner and doesn’t push it around the plate AFTER blousing and needing to eat the carbs in front of her or else she’ll have a bloody hypo! (gasp for air).
Hope you’re still with me and haven’t passed out after reading that relatively punctuation-free paragraph.
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Before I get to the 5 recipes for my soups for one let me dangle a little carrot under your nose to get your taste buds limbered up. Scrap the carrot, I’m actually talking about bread, crusty, I mean proper crusty bread that even I can make! I’ve tweeted and instagrammed about Grass Roots Bakery before and if you follow me on Instagram you will probably have noticed a few instastories of late with me getting overly excited about my bread making skills. I say skills, the bread mixes are super simple. Empty packet into bowl, add tepid water, oil and egg (or in my case 60ml extra or water) and hey-presto you have bread dough, and get this; it actually doubles in size when you prove it for 40mins I KNOW! Gluten free bread that actually rises!
I’ll forgive (just this once mind) for thinking that I’ve been paid to write those nice things above, NOT TRUE! I actually really love Andrea’s mixes at Grass Roots Bakery and to prove it to you I bought a Gift Box with a brown and white bread mix tucked up inside for you to try too. [Update: Giveaway expired] I actually bought myself two large bags of each mix for myself at the same time and when I saw that gift boxes were available in the online shop one of the boxes fell into my cart accidentally-on-purpose!
So if you want to win these bread mixes then you’ll need to scroll to the bottom of this post, leave a lovely comment (you can leave a crappy one if you like, the winner is picked by a clever computer but I’d much rather a nice comment) and follow the instructions to enter as many times as you want to improve your chances. Good luck. [Update: Giveaway expired]
And now, without further ado, my 5 soups for one that happen to be naturally free from gluten, dairy, eggs, wheat, nuts and are vegan.
Roast Tomato and Red Pepper Soup
Ingredients
- 250 g vine ripe tomatoes
- 1 red pepper quartered and cored
- olive oil
- 300 ml vegetable stock
- ½ clove garlic
- 1 tsp dried or chopped fresh basil
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- pop the tomatoes (I keep mine on the vine) and pepper quarters on a baking tray with some olive oil and seasoning and roast for 40 mins at 200°C
- make your vegetable stock by following the instructions
- once roasted place the tomatoes and pepper, ½ garlic clove, basil, 300ml of vegetable stock and seasoning in a blender and pulse until smooth.
- Pour into a 500ml jar and seal immediately
- Allow to cool before popping in the fridge
Notes
Nutrition
Smokey Butternut Squash Soup
Ingredients
- 1 small to medium butternut squash halved
- olive oil
- 300 ml vegetable stock
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- ¼ clove garlic
- Pinch of Smoked salt not compulsory
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- pop the chopped parsnips on a baking tray with some olive oil and seasoning and roast for 40 mins at 200°C
- make your vegetable stock by following the instructions
- once roasted place the parsnip, half garlic clove, 300ml of vegetable stock and seasoning in a blender and pulse until smooth.
- Add fresh or dried parsley if you wish
- Pour into a 500ml jar and seal immediately
- Allow to cool before popping in the fridge
Notes
Nutrition
Broccoli and Vegan Stilton Soup
Ingredients
- 100 g raw broccoli florets
- 50 g vegan blue cheese I use Violife
- 250 ml vegetable stock
- 50 ml soya cream
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Simply add all the ingredients into a blender and pulse until smooth
- Pour into a 500ml jar and seal immediately
- Allow to cool before popping in the fridge
Notes
Nutrition
Curried Parsnip
Ingredients
- 3 peeled parsnips roughly chopped
- 300 ml vegetable stock
- olive oil
- ¼ garlic clove
- ½ tsp cumin powder
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- pop the chopped parsnips on a baking tray with some olive oil and seasoning and roast for 40 mins at 200°C
- make your vegetable stock by following the instructions
- once roasted place the parsnip, ¼ garlic clove, cumin, 300ml of vegetable stock and seasoning in a blender and pulse until smooth.
- Pour into a 500ml jar and seal immediately
- Allow to cool before popping in the fridge
Notes
Nutrition
A simple recipe for Roast Parsnip Soup for One
Roast Parsnip
Ingredients
- 3 peeled parsnips roughly chopped
- 300 ml vegetable stock
- olive oil
- ½ garlic clove
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- pop the chopped parsnips on a baking tray with some olive oil and seasoning and roast for 40 mins at 200°C
- make your vegetable stock by following the instructions
- once roasted place the parsnip, half garlic clove, 300ml of vegetable stock and seasoning in a blender and pulse until smooth.
- Add fresh or dried parsley if you wish
- Pour into a 500ml jar and seal immediately
- Allow to cool before popping in the fridge
Notes
Nutrition
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I love parsnips, my husband loves soup, and one of my daughters is a vegetarian, so this post will be very well received around here. Thank you!
Hat trick! I’m so pleased you’ve found the post useful, they really are soups at their most simple but who needs fancy soups when the stars are the humble ingredients.
I love the sound of the butternut squash soup. :D Everything looks good, though. ;) Thanks for sharing, Rebecca. x
Me too…in fact, I’m making it this week (yay!)
I am always happy to eat soup too and these sound delicious – I don’t know which one I’d choose to eat first! Maybe the curried parsnip! Thanks for sharing with #CookOnceEatTwice!
Thank you for hosting as usual Corina, fab linky. These are all scrummy but I was craving my curried parsnip the other day…so guess what I’m having this week!
My Daughter loves soup and not had much since being diagnosed with coeliac. I will have to make her some of these :) Thanks for the recipes.
What a tasty looking soup selection! I’ll be saving some of these for winter!
The roast parsnip sounds a dream and so delicious! :) X X
I love the sound of the roast parsnip – delicious
Never actually baked my own bread but love to try
The roast parsnip sounds fabulous!
I love the smell of home made bread cooking and to top it off its gluten free so would help with my digestion thank you for the opportunity
I have been looking around your online shop, it’s brilliant, will have to try your bread mix. this is a fantastic prize
This looks amazing! Perfect for gluten sensitive tummies!
These soup recipes are lovely, will have to try a couple of them
lovely soups
These look great. I haven’t yet managed to bake a good gluten free roll.
i hate having soup with no bread but im not aloud gluton
what a fab selection of recipes – its like there is something for everyone! I know my family would enjoy x
Home made bread is the best!
Oh perfect that tomato and pepper one sounds amazing! Just bought a bread maker so I love experimenting right now … And I love soup ?
The soup recipe sounds really delicious
Great soup recipes. I’ve made Butternut Squash soup in the past, it’s filling but low in calories and fat. I’ve never thought to put smoked paprika in so going to give it a go, it will add extra flavour but not the calories…great!
Great prize, would come in handy for when my daughter visits.
sounds lovely
some lovely receipes
Love homemade bread, made to how i like it.
Great presented website – lovely recipes and ideas
Oh wow, so many different recipes , especially being a celiac as well.
This sounds wonderful as we are trying to cut down on the amount of gluten we eat ?
My partner loves making bread, would love to give this one a try, thanks for sharing
Mmm those recipes look yummy, especially the parsnip soup! Perfect giveaway having got a coeliac daughter so we have to cook and eat gluten free
we love home made bread and soup – we make both weekly – would love to try these bread mixes
I am new to making bread and it’s something I’ve always wanted to do, I think this is a good place to start.
thank you for such fabulous ideas – they always inspire me
Your soup recipes look delicious and don’t look complicated to make, either. Also, I like the sound of the gluten-free bread mixes from Grass Roots Bakery. I have been following a gluten-free and vegan diet for some years now and the amount of gluten-free bread on sale in supermarkets which contain egg, and thus is unsuitable for vegans, is significantly high so making your own is another option.
Love baking
Yum, so many great soup ideas and those bread rolls look amazing!
” am a hamster stuck in a wheel, a tired, unkempt hamster devoid of nutritional value to its diet leaving it sluggish, spotty, damaged nails and the return of the dreaded reflux.” Erm, are you in my head? This is just how I feel. All I’ve been eating recently has been on the beige side… These soups look absolutely perfect! I would definitely go for the roasted tomato and pepper one first. I used to make tomato soup all the time, but like your gruel, no one other than me will touch it (annoying!). The broccoli and vegan stilton one also sounds right up my street! You crack me up by the way!
Oh darling, we’ll be hamsters together for company better still, lets rock this looking after #1 and have all the energy we need for our little ones xx
A great giveaway
I regularly cook different food for myself as I want to eat vegan and my kids would prefer to eat chicken nuggets and chips with a side of pizza! Sometimes you’ve just got to compromise and put your own needs first. Love the sound of these soups.
Do you know what? I could kiss you for this comment! I KNOW it’s not just my family but when faced with the perfect brigade on social media you do end up beat yourself up about it….and if I don;t look after myself and get poorly it all goes to [email protected]#t! xxx
Love these soups! So delicious…though I don’t think I could ever bring myself to make soup just for one. I am a big batch girl when it comes to soups. I like to make an enormous vat and then decant into every Tupperware in the house and jam pack them into the freezer :-D Eb x
Haha, the freezers full of Warburton Gluten Free Loaves…when they’re actually on the shelves in Sainsbury’s I buy them in bulk to avoid a disappointed Bethany come packed lunch time! Totally get what you’re saying, I batch cook for chilli, spag bol and curry …mostly chilli given it seems to be the only meal Lewis will eat right now! xxx
Thanks for the competition – sounds great!
When I think of a hearty and filling meal, this is the type of food I want. Can’t wait to try this!
Thank you Kimberly, it’s definitely hearty and so so simple too
great giveaway, thanks for the chance
I do try to steer clear of gluten and feel better for it.
I adore soup, love these free from options and your pics as usual are amazing x
Oh thank you so much Vicki, I’ve been taking tips from Mel Knibb,she’s very proud. And I’m pleased to say I’m doing a good job at sticking to the healthier diet too x
Oh I got a big packet of parsnips that needs to be used up, and I have never had parsnip soup…. I shall also be giving the broccoli and Stilton soup a try, any excuse to buy some Violife ? #freefromfridays
Oh Chloe, parsnip soup is lovely! Glad your going to give it a go xx
I love the sound of all these soups! I am a big fan of soup in winter and eat it a lot. I also try to get my children to eat it but one of them always refuses. The other one doesn’t follow a pattern -It depends on his mood! Thanks so much for sharing with #CookOnceEatTwice
Oh blimey Corina, that’s my life in a nutshell!! Hopefully they’ll sort their tastebuds out in their teens!
hope im lucky, thank you x
Good luck Laura x
I really hope you’ve been sticking to this hon. Soups are so full of goodness and so ridiculously easy to make, as you’ve proved with these fabulous recipes. Gorgeous photos too. Look after you mama xxx
Thank you darling, I’m trying my very best…it’s not always easy as you know only too well xxx
I love homemade bread. Gluten free is an added bonus.
I was diagnosed coeliac 24 years ago and we’ve come a long way since those dry, curled up tiny loaves that you could only get in a health food shop! The bread looks great, as does the soup, my soup maker might be my favourite kitchen item x
You’ve got to love a good soup…ooh soup maker that’s a gadget I don’t have but I feel I should haha
i would love to make my own gluten free bread, this sounds lovely x
It really is, I’m ever so impressed and believe me, my bread making skills leave a lot to be desired.
What a great idea soup for one. I have always tended to batch bake soup and freeze in single portions but I don’t always have enough space. Now problem solved. Thank you for linking to #CookBlogShare.
My sister a recently diagnosed celiac will be interested in those bread mixes
Thank you Jacqui, sad about your sister but free from foods are so much better these days, key is to eat naturally :-)
Delightful always SPOILING US with your treats
Aw Margaret, thank you for the recognition, I just love to give pressies xxx
This sounds great as I cannot eat gluten!
Perfect! …erm, I mean that in the nicest way! Hahaha