Soup. Slow cooked, hot steaming soup on a wet wintery day, isn’t that just the best? Actually I don’t mind a chilled cucumber or tomato soup on a steaming hot summery day either, but as we’re moving towards winter here in New Zealand, the hot version is more on my mind. I really don’t like cold winters, it’s one of the reasons I moved away from the Netherlands. But comfort food like soup make the wintery days a lot easier to get through, and even something to look forward to!

I love using my slow cooker for this. Cut the carrots, onions, parsnip, cabbage, leek, garlic, potato the night before. In the morning before going to work, quickly brown the veggies, add water, spices, salt and pepper, and turn it on.

As soon as you walk up the driveway in the evening, the beautiful aroma welcomes you. Hmmm, with some fresh crusty homemade garlic bread. Oh yes, bring on the winter days!