Roasted Tomato & Red Pepper Soup

No matter what the time of year, soup is always my favourite lunch option. There are endless variations, in the winter its warming and comforting and in the summer it's such a  great light option. Without a shadow of a doubt this Deliciously Ella recipe is my ultimate favourite and barely a month goes by where I don't whip up a batch (or two) of this! 

I know there are lots of options for fresh soups in the supermarkets nowadays but with how quick and simple this is to throw together there really is no excuse. Plus by making it yourself you know that all that's in it are beautiful, healthy ingredients! 

Ingredients

• 8 tomatoes
• 3 red peppers
• handful fresh basil leaves
• handful fresh rosemary
• 5 bay leaves
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 3 tbsp lime juice
• 3 tbsp tomato puree
• 1 tsp worcestershire sauce

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees celsius.
2. Roughly chop the peppers and tomatoes into large chunks.
3. Coat the bottom of a roasting pan in oil and place the peppers and tomatoes in the pan along with the basil, rosemary, bay leaves and thyme, another drizzle of olive oil and salt and pepper.
4. Give it all a quick mix around and then pop into the oven for 30 minutes.
5. After 30 minutes place the roasted vegetables and any juices into a blender but make sure to remove the bay leaves and any rosemary stalks.
6. Add the lime juice, tomato puree and worcestershire sauce to the blender and blitz up until you get your desired consistency - feel free to add a little water if necessary.
7. All that's left now is to tuck in and enjoy!! 

You can keep any leftovers in a sealed container in the fridge for 4/5 days so this makes the perfect lunch option for the week! 

I can't get enough of this soup at the moment so I hope you enjoy it as much as me! 

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Breakfast Ice Lollies

I don't know if you've heard...but at the moment the UK is going through a pretty epic heatwave and with temperatures getting up to 34 degrees celsius in London finding the perfect breakfast option can be pretty tricky! 

The majority of my favourite breakfast options are all hot and include pancakes and a full English, none of which are what you want in the hot weather! So I put my thinking cap on and came up with a super simple, quick and refreshing breakfast option which I can guarantee is going to be my go to option throughout the warm summer months. 

Say hello to the most delicious yoghurt, berry & granola ice lollies! Yes that's right I did say ice lollies for breakfast but they're healthy so you can justify it I assure you.

Ingredients

• Natural yoghurt / greek yoghurt
• Mixed berries
• Granola 
• Runny honey (optional) 

In all honesty this recipe doesn't really need any instructions but why not! 

Method

1. Spoon some of the yoghurt into your ice lolly moulds - you want it to go about an inch of the way up each one. If using greek yoghurt I would recommend thinning it out with a little bit of water. 
2. Sprinkle in a thin layer of granola followed by some fresh berries - you can stew these down quickly in a pan if you would like to create a quick jam. 
3. Top up with more yoghurt up to the top of your moulds. 
4. You can either stop at this stage and put the handles in and pop them in the freezer overnight. Or, if you fancy it you can grab a knife or skewer and mix together all your layers like I did. 
5. All that's left now is to make space in the freezer and  leave them overnight for you to enjoy tomorrow morning! 

It goes without saying that these are super customisable in terms of what fruits you add in, flavoured yoghurts etc and I can't wait to play about with this some more and see what I can come up with. 

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Granny's Chocolate & Lemon Mousse

Lets be honest you really can't go wrong with a chocolate mousse, it just always hits the spot and this is my absolute favourite. This is actually one of my granny's recipes and she used to make this every single time that we went down to Cornwall to visit her and my grampa so it has a lot of nostalgic memories attached to it. 

Since my granny passed away a few years ago no one else in the family had made it until about a month ago when I suddenly remembered about it and fancied having a go at making it for myself. That same day mum sent me the recipe, I picked up the ingredients and whipped up my first ever chocolate and lemon mousse in memory of my granny. 

This is a ridiculously easy recipe and I love the hint of lemon flavour that comes through - lemon is never something I would have paired with chocolate but it really works! 

Ingredients

• 135g lemon jelly tablet
• 100g plain cooking chocolate
• 170g evaporated milk (chilled) 
• 300ml boiling water

Method

1. Place the cubed jelly, plain chocolate and boiling water into a blender and blitz until everything has melted and you have a smooth liquid. 
2. Place the chocolate lemon mixture in the fridge until it has the consistency of unbeaten egg white. 
3. In a deep bowl, whip the evaporated milk until very light and fluffy and then gradually beat in the jelly mixture. 
4. Pour into a serving bowl and refrigerate until set. 

See, it really is easy! This is the perfect dessert for any occasion and could be made in individual ramekins as personal servings. 

In the past month I've made this recipe 3 times and I think it's safe to say I ate at least 90% of the bowl every single time...woops...! It's just so tasty though and I cannot get enough. 

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Quick & Easy Overnight Oats

Breakfast is one of those meals that I know is super important to fit in but at the same time it leaves me so utterly uninspired that sometimes I just don't fancy it. That was until I finally tried out overnight oats and yes I know that I'm a little late on the bandwagon with this and I have no excuse but my gosh am I glad I finally tried them! 

This is probably one of the easiest things to throw together for breakfast and my favourite bit? You can whip up a few batches of this on a Sunday evening and it'll last you throughout the week so you don't have to think about it again! On top of that it's incredibly versatile so you could never possibly get bored of it. 

This recipe is so easy it really doesn't need to be broken down into ingredients and method like I usually would. 

In an airtight container, simply combine together 1/2 cup rolled oats, 2/3 cup milk (I use unsweetened almond milk), 1/2 plain fat free greek yoghurt and 1/2 tsp honey and pop in the fridge overnight. 

The overnight oats alone are tasty but can get a little boring so this is where the fun comes in - the toppings. You could top your overnight oats with anything you can think of but some of my personal favourites are stewed apple, mixed berries, or if I'm feeling naughty then maybe a few chocolate chips! 

What is your favourite breakfast to whip up? Have you ever tried overnight oats and if so what do you like to add to it? 

Let me know if you try this out this week as I would love to hear what you think. 

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Mixed Berry Smoothie

This delicious and vibrant smoothie couldn't be easier to throw together in the morning, just pop all of the ingredients into your blender and off you go! It's jam packed with vitamins and is super easy to customise each day so you can't possibly get bored. 

What you need...

• 100g frozen mixed berries
• 1 banana
• 2 spoonfuls greek / natural yoghurt
• 150ml apple juice
• 4/5 mint leaves

All you need to do is throw all of the ingredients into your blender and blitz until smooth - this usually takes a couple of minutes to get a really good texture. If it's a little thick in consistency simply add some more juice or water. 

If you have fresh berries as opposed to frozen then throw in a few ice cubes too to give that proper 'smoothie' texture. 

Fancy a change? Why not add peaches and spinach? Or even swap the apple juice for coconut water! 

Another one of my go to smoothies is a citrus one that's perfect to kick start you in the morning, check out the recipe here. 

What do you like to throw in your smoothies? 

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