Having finished our Christmastime travels, we are back at home, so the scales are back in use, and I'm keeping a note again of the cost of our meals. Having got back in the mid-afternoon yesterday, dinner was the only meal remaining. We were both feeling a little under the weather, so I decided to make some soup - and attempted to make it sufficiently hearty to be a meal in its own right.
We still had a few potatoes left from the 25kg sack we picked up (despite donating them to the general Christmas supply at my parents'), and they were still in good shape. I used 4 small potatoes (244g = 6p), chopped into small cubes (picture above), and 110g (=24p) of "soup mix" - consisting of dried pulses and barley. The latter I had in a jar (see picture), so had to try to remember the proper way to reconstitute it. I covered the mixture in water and set it boiling, then reduced to a simmer for a couple of hours, until the peas seemed soft. It wasn't what I should have done. The real instructions are through the link, above, and involve soaking overnight, and making sure they are well-rinsed. Oops. I don't think I've poisoned us, though, but I should remember for next time. I added a bit of salt and pepper, and a bay leaf (from a huge CostCo jar - no idea of cost per leaf, but perhaps up to a few pence) while it cooked, and the water seemed to pick up a nice flavour. I added the potatoes once I thought the soup mix borderline-cooked, and then left it all to simmer until the potato was cooked too. I was pleased with the result; It was very tasty, though the soup mix was slightly too much on the borderline of being undercooked, but only just. The colour was a bit wan, but I don't think unreasonable for a potato soup.
It made three bowls-full, which between the two of us we finished up. By itself, it was quite a light meal, but it was enough for me.
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