Louella Berryman

Soup is exactly the kind of thing you need after a long day studying or at work and it’s incredibly easy (and cheap) to make.

These recipes use simple but tasty combinations of ingredients that you probably already have in your cupboard. No need to make a last minute trek to Tesco is always music to my ears…

Each soup costs no more than £2.20 to make and they all take half an hour or less to prepare. You may be able to make the soups even more cheaply from Aldi or Lidl, but as not everyone has access to these supermarkets I’ve worked out pricing using Tesco.

If you’re feeling boujie, you can add a few splashes of cream to each of these soup recipes for a more indulgent flavour.

Tomato and roasted garlic

Heat the oven to 150 degrees and roast four whole garlic cloves on a baking tray for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, fry one chopped onion in olive oil until soft. Add a tin of chopped tomatoes and 450ml of vegetable stock and simmer on a low heat When the garlic is done, squeeze each clove into the soup and simmer for a further 5 minutes. Using the stick blender, blend the soup and season with salt, pepper and a teaspoon of sugar.

Total shop = £1.29 (a whole pack of stock cubes)

Leek, potato and rosemary

Roughly chop one leek and fry in olive oil for 10 minutes until nice and soft. Add 1 teaspoon of fresh or dried rosemary and 300g diced potatoes (skin on). Stir to combine and then add 450ml vegetable stock. Simmer on a low heat until the potatoes are soft before blending until smooth and seasoning to taste.

Total shop = £2.16 (a whole jar of rosemary and pack of stock cubes)

Carrot, apple and thyme

 Dice 1 carrot, 1 apple (both skin on) and 1 onion. Add the onion and 1 teaspoon of fresh or dried thyme leaves to a large pan with some olive oil and fry until soft. Then add the carrot and apple and cover with 450ml vegetable stock. Simmer on a low heat until the carrot is soft. Use the stick blender to blend until smooth. Season to taste and add more thyme if you like.

Total shop = £1.77 (a whole jar of thyme and pack of stock cubes)

Pea soup

Fry one diced onion in olive oil with two cloves of garlic until soft before adding 250g of frozen peas. Add 450ml of vegetable stock and simmer for 5 minutes before blitzing with a hand blender and seasoning with plenty of salt and pepper.

Total shop = £1.58 (a whole bag of peas and pack of stock cubes)