Carrot, Beans, Peppers & Rainbow Chard + A Hit of Habanero

To keep my mind from focusing on the fact that it is almost the end of the season for the Wakefield market, I decided to make a colourful soup inspired by the weather and my need to pack in as many beautiful veggies I could.

The idea to give it a hit of habanero, came from Instagram posts last week by the Melrose market’s team members Linda and Julie, who were making soup by the gallon to fight off a cold and the heat seems to help there too!

And finally, to give it some depth of flavour, I added a small piece of star anise pod, which made the broth even more flavourful. This is a great trick for when you don’t have soy or tamari sauce for that extra punch of umami.

This soup is so simple and yet versatile; I hope you use this as a starting point and make it your own. And Diane, one of our volunteers called it the ‘simple super soup’ but honestly I think you’ll agree it is simply super!!

Serves 4

1 medium carrot diced
1 medium onion diced
1 small pepper (1 cup) diced
1 cup green beans diced
3-4 cups roughly chopped greens + stems
5-6 cups warm water or stock of your choice
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 clove of garlic
1 star anise pod
½ tsp. dry thyme leaves or 2 fresh stalks
½ inch sliver of hot pepper or a pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)
½ -1 tbsp. cider vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

1. Wash, trim, peel and dice all the veggies into bite sized pieces
2. Boil the stock in a separate pot if using stock instead of water like I did at the market
3. In a separate pot, heat the oil and add the garlic, onions and herbs, stir-fry for a few seconds, lower the heat so as to not burn the garlic, stir-fry until the onions are translucent
4. Add the carrots and peppers next, season with some salt and pepper and stir-fry for 5-7 minutes
5. Then add the beans, stir-fry for another 5 minutes and then add the stock
6. Bring the stock and veggies to a boil and adjust for the seasoning and the chili heat
7. Add the chard greens including the stems and let the pot simmer for approx. 10-12 minutes

Note: Add the piece of chili or chili flakes at the start when stir frying the onions if you want to have a noticeable kick to the soup or add a pinch at the end for a quick flavour. Adding the chili at the end does not allow it to develop it’s aroma


8. Finish off with the vinegar; adjust seasoning and serve hot with some crusty bread