Roasted Pepper Soup

These cold winter nights and weekends deserve a little warmth so i thought it was time to get out the recipe book again and make a soup that i hadn't made for around 5 years! Roasted Pepper Soup.
This is a nice easy one to do as you can get the whole thing done in around 45mins. The recipe uses peppers from a jar although there is no reason why you can't roast your own peppers in an oven if you wish to use fresh produce.

Roasted Pepper Soup

Serves 6     Prep time 10 mins    Cooking time 35 mins

Ingredients

• 5 roasted red bell peppers from a jar
• 1/2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/3 cup finely chopped carrots
• 1/3 cup finely chopped celery
• 1 large onion chopped
• salt to taste
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1 small russet potato
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 pints vegetable stock
• fresh basil leaves

Instructions

1.  Drain the roasted red peppers
2. heat the olive oil in a saucepan over a low heat. Add the celery, carrots & onion. Season lightly with salt and pepper and cook for around 10 mins
3. Peel and slice the potato and add to the pot. Add the bay leaf and stock bringing to the boil quickly over a high heat
4. Lower the heat and simmer until the vegetables are tender (about 15mins)
5. Add the roasted red peppers and simmer for another 10 mins
6. Remove the bayleaf, puree the soup in a blender and season to taste.
7. Serve in warm bowls and sprinkle with chopped basil.

There you go. 
Its nice and quick, nice and simple so no excuses  go on and enjoy roast pepper soup.