Sweet Potato Soup with Tarragon and Hazelnut Pesto

Ingredients

For the Soup:

1 onion

2 cloves of garlic

2 sticks of celery

700g sweet potato

1 veg stock cube

Salt

Pepper

For the Pesto:

30g flat leaf parsley

10g fresh tarragon (or 1 tsp dried)

1 garlic clove

70g parmesan

70g hazelnuts

100ml extra virgin olive oil

1/2 tsp lemon

Salt

Pepper

Here’s how

Chop the onions, sweet potatoes and celery before placing in a saucepan with a splash of olive oil.

Add the crushed garlic to the pan.

Season with a little salt and pepper and cook the vegetables for 5-10 minutes.

Pour in 2 pints of boiling water ands the stock cubes.

Simmer the soup until the potatoes are tender, then blend until smooth.

Taste the soup for seasoning and adjust accordingly to your tasters.

Mean to Malle the pesto place the garlic and a little salt into a pestle and mortar and crush.

Add the roasted hazelnuts and continue to crush them together.

Add in the Parmesan cheese and the chopped herbs.

Pour in the olive oil and stir together to Create a pesto.

Finish with the lemon juice and season if required.

Serve up the soup with a spoonful of pesto in the centre and add a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil for that skillet finish.