Quick red pepper and tomato soup with croutons

Quick red pepper and tomato soup with croutons: fruity peppers, chopped tomatoes, basil and crunchy wholemeal croutons from the pan – simple and easy for every day.

At a glance

• Serves 3
• Prep time: 5 min
• Cooking time: 15 min
• Total time: 20 min
• Calories: 240 kcal per serving
• Protein: 6 g
• Fat: 9 g
• Carbs: 32 g

Ingredients

• 2 peppers
• 1 tin of chopped tomatoes
• 300 ml vegetable stock
• 1 onion
• 1 clove of garlic
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 3 slices of wholemeal toast
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 handful of basil

Method

You’ll need: frying pan · saucepan · stick blender · chopping board · knife · wooden spoon · ladle

1. Peel the onion and garlic and dice roughly. Deseed the peppers and cut them into strips.
2. Heat the olive oil in a pan and fry the onion, garlic and peppers until the veg takes on a little colour. Deglaze with the balsamic vinegar.
3. Add the chopped tomatoes and vegetable stock and simmer everything until the peppers are soft. Then blend the soup until smooth.
4. Season the soup to taste with salt and black pepper. Roughly tear the basil and stir some of it in, or set it aside for later.
5. For the croutons, dice the wholemeal toast and fry in melted butter in a frying pan until golden brown all over.
6. Serve the soup hot, topped with the croutons and garnished with fresh basil.

Good to know

This soup is uncomplicated and still really well-rounded in flavour. Warm, tomatoey, slightly sweet and with a crunchy contrast on top.

Swaps

Butter → ghee (can be heated to high temperatures for frying, hardly any water); wholemeal toast → wholemeal sourdough bread (often a little stronger in flavour, more fibre depending on the bread); vegetable stock → homemade stock (usually less salt and fewer additives); balsamic vinegar → lemon juice (fresher acidity, provides some vitamin C).

Allergens

Contains gluten and milk from the toast and butter. Usually suits children well if you go easy on the pepper; during pregnancy it's no concern with good kitchen hygiene and fresh ingredients.