Spinach soup: A taste of spring in every spoonful

Spinach soup is a straightforward recipe that brings back memories of spring days. Its green colour immediately catches the eye, and its mild taste makes it a favourite among both children and adults. Preparation is quick and easy, and you can make a whole pot of soup for a really small cost.

Although children often shy away from spinach, in this form, many a picky eater has asked for seconds. It's a great way to sneak more vegetables into the daily diet. Besides spinach, there's also room for potatoes, leeks, and carrots. The addition of cream cheese not only makes the soup thicker but also creamy. In my home, they say it's "pleasant on the tongue."

It's a light and tasty soup, and thanks to the egg and potatoes, also nourishing. You can prepare it with either a light vegetable stock or with chicken stock left over from Sunday dinner. Instead of cream cheese, you can opt for single cream. At first glance, it might resemble sorrel soup, but it has a much milder taste.

Ingredients:

• 1 medium-sized leek,
• 2 carrots,
• 1 onion,
• 1-1.5 litres of vegetable or chicken stock,
• 3-4 potatoes,
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil,
• 1 tablespoon of butter,
• 140 grams of fresh spinach,
• 100 grams of cream cheese,
• 4 eggs,
• Salt and pepper to taste,
• 2 allspice berries,
• 1 bay leaf,
• A pinch of nutmeg.

Instructions:

1. Finely chop the onion.
2. Add olive oil and butter to a pot and sauté the onion until translucent.
3. Remove the green leaves from the leek, slice the white and light green parts into half-slices.
4. Add the leek to the pot with the onion and sauté. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Peel and grate the carrots using a coarse grater, add to the pot, and cook for 2-3 minutes.
6. Then add diced potatoes and sauté again for a while, stirring the contents of the pot.
7. Pour in the stock, add the bay leaf and allspice berries.
8. Cook for 10-15 minutes until the vegetables are soft.
9. In the meantime, boil the eggs until hard.
10. Add the cream cheese to the soup and stir until it melts.
11. Remove the pot from the heat, add the spinach and stir.
12. Season with nutmeg, salt, and pepper.

Serve the finished soup with the hard-boiled eggs. Enjoy!