This is my soup of the year - an unbelievably hearty and tasty concoction. A variation of 'Sopa de Castanas' from the excellent Moro Cookbook. I use frozen chestnuts which we sell in the shop, but by all means scald and peel your fresh ones if you have the patience.

Ingredients - serves 6

500g chestnuts, defrosted
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 carrots, peeled & finely chopped
2 celery sticks, trimmed & chopped
2 tbsp Eleanthos olive oil
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
150g cooking chorizo, cut into 1cm chunks
1 tsp ground cumin
1 sprig fresh thyme
pinch of chilli flakes (if you like it hot)
1 can Essential chopped tomatoes
2 cans Essential chickpeas, drained & rinsed
1.5 ltr Marigold Ssiss vegetable stock
salt & pepper to taste

Method

First, roast the peeled chestnuts in a medium oven for a few minutes to bring out the flavour. Break them up a little with a rolling pin or in the food processor.

Fry the onion, carrot and celery in olive oil for a few minutes. Add cooking chorizo and a pinch of salt and fry for about fifteen minutes until the mixture begins to brown and disintegrate into a paste then stir in the sliced garlic, ground cumin and thyme sprig and if the chorizo was mild rather, than piquant, a good pinch of chilli flakes. Pour over a tin of chopped tomatoes and the chestnuts. Fry for a few more minutes and add vegetable stock and chickpeas (or even better a jar of Monjardin Garbanzos). Bring back to the boil and simmer for ten minutes. Briefly pulse in the food processor so as not to lose all texture, check seasoning and adjust if necessary, serve.