Super-quick spinach soup

Written by Catherine Saxelby on Wednesday, 15 July 2009.
Tagged: dinner, easy, lunch, quick, super food

Ready In: 17 minutes
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 7 minutes
Serves: 4

Normally I'm a big fan of fresh spinach (I even grow it myself) but this easy soup is a great stand-by if you can't get it fresh or you've got to get 'something' cooked and on the table in under 15 minutes - no mean feat by anyone's standards. It uses a packet of frozen spinach, which is one of the more nutritious frozen vegetables and a handy standby to keep in your freezer.

Ingredients

1-2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 tablespoon plain (all purpose) flour
2 cups chicken or vegetable stock, reduced-salt
½ cup milk
250 g pack frozen chopped spinach
pinch of nutmeg
TO SERVE:
Thick Greek yoghurt

Nutrition per serve

690 kilojoules (160 Calories), 10 g fat (including 2 g saturated fat), 11 g carbohydrate (including 6 g sugars), 4 g fibre and 410 mg sodium. Read our nutrition rating system.

Directions

1. Heat oil in saucepan. Add onion and cook over moderate heat for 2-3 minutes until soft and transparent.

2. Stir in flour and reduce heat. Pour in stock and milk, a little at a time, stirring continuously until smooth and thickened.

3. Stir in spinach and nutmeg. Blend the soup by using a hand-held blender or in a food processor for 10-15 seconds blitzed until smooth. Cook again gently to heat through and serve with a dollop of yoghurt swirled in.

Variations

Soup can be left unpureed for a chunkier texture.
If you have time, you can make this soup using a 500 g bunch of fresh English spinach. Simply trim off the stalks, steam leaves lightly and add to recipe with nutmeg. Puree.
This soup also tastes great chilled in summer.