Andrea's Beetroot soup

I used a Gordon Ramsay recipe as my base, but tweeked it a little:

3-4tbsp olive oil
1 onion, peeled and chopped
1 bay leaf
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
2 large carrots, peeled and chopped
1 celery stalk, trimmed and chopped
2 x 250gm packs of ready cooked beetroot in natural juices
600ml of hot veg of chicken stock
Seasoning - salt and pepper
Squeeze of lemon juice

Heat a large saucepan and pour in the olive oil. Add the onion, bay leaf, garlic, carrots and celery. Cook over a high heat, stirring often, for 4-5 mins until the veggies begin to soften.

Meanwhile, coasrsely grate the beetroot (waering rubber gloves to prevent hands from staining). Add to the pan and pour in the stock. Cook and simmer for 10 mins until the veggies are tender. Discard the bay leaf.

Whiz the soup in a blender. Taste and adjust the seasoning and add lemon juice. Reheat.

Gordon tops this with smoked duck pieces and sour cream. However, I didn't. I added some double cream to my recipe and missed out the lemon. I added a black and red pepper mix which gave it a kick...you could also add some chilli powder.