Spinach and Pepper Soup

Ingredients:

2 tbsp oil
1 tbsp spring onion paste
1 tbsp flour
350 ml vegetable/ chicken stock
1/2 kg blanched spinach leaves
grated nutmeg
salt and pepper
1 bay leaf
250 ml whipped curd

Pepper Soup
2 tbsp oil
1 chopped onion
2 star anise
1/2 kg deseeded tomatoes
1 tsp tomato puree
250 gm red bell peppers- seeded and chopped
2-3 tbsp cream


Method:

For the spinach soup, soften the spring onion on hot oil for 1 minute. Stir in flour and continue cooking for a further minute. Pour in the stock. Bring to a boil.
Add the spinach, nutmeg, seasoning and bay leaf to the pan. Simmer for 5-7 minutes.
Remove bay leaf and blend the soup and re-season. Cool and whisk in yoghurt. Serve with the pepper mixture.

For the pepper soup, soften onion in oil for 5 minutes. Add star anise, tomatoes, and puree. Season well and cook for five minutes.

Stir in chopped bell peppers. Continue cooking till thick. Season and strain. Whisk in the cream. Serve with the spinach soup.

:Star Anise:

(Star anise is the unusual fruit of a small oriental tree. It is, as the name suggests,star shaped, radiating between five and ten pointed boat-shaped sections, about eight on average. The fruit is picked up before it can ripen, and then it is dried.They are available whole or even ground to a red-brown powder.)