The easiest way to stay healthy is to have a refrigerator full of ready-to-eat nutritious meals. This is why I like to start my week by making a big batch of soup so I'll never be tempted to stray into, ‘I’ll just eat crackers for lunch’  land. The idea for potato and watercress came from a trip up to Los Gatos by the lovely owner, Linda McGrath. I played around with flavours and found that the sherry gives it that sweet kick to make you feel like the soup is super special.

Potato Watercress Soup:
1 pound baby red potatoes
1 sweet onion
4 cloves garlic
1 t red pepper
1/2 t paprika
salt + pepper
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (Lucini Italia)
1/4 cup sherry
4 cups organic free-range chicken broth
2 bundles watercress

Slice up your onion along with peeled and crushed garlic and add them to a large pot with the oil. Season with paprika, salt and pepper and cook for about 10 minutes or until the onions begin to brown. Scrub clean the potatoes and half-heartedly peel (good to leave some skin). Chop into quarters and add to the pot. Toss the potatoes so they are well coated and cook for another 8 minutes. Add sherry and cook off for 1 minute. Follow with chicken broth and let simmer for 15 minutes or until the potatoes can be easily punctured with a fork. Add the watercress for 1 minute—just long enough to keep the lovely bright green color. Remove from heat and add small batches to your blender until entire mixture is smooth. Garnish with a few raw watercress leaves, s+p, dollop of olive oil drizzle, and a pinch of paprika and/or truffle oil.

Tags: food, healthy recipes