Beetroot & cauliflower soup with feta and bacon

Some of my best recipe creations result from having to use up ingredients that are on the brink of spoiling.
This soup was one such accidental concoction but don’t let that put you off, it tastes amazing.
Topping this hearty soup with feta and crispy bacon adds extra protein and lots more flavour.
It lasts and freezes will so it’s pretty easy to batch cook if needed.

Ingredients for 2:
1/2 head of cauliflower, 250g approximately, roughly chopped
4-5 beetroots, peeled and roughly chopped
750ml of vegetable or chicken stock
1 onion, peeled & sliced
1 clove of garlic, peeled & sliced
1/4 of a teaspoon of fennel seeds
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to season
rapeseed oil to cook

to top: 1/2 block of feta cheese, 5 rashers of high-welfare streaky bacon

Method:
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C. Place the bacon on a roasting tray and bake until crispy.
Remove from the oven, chop roughly when cool enough to handle and set aside.
Heat a teaspoon of rapeseed oil on medium in a large saucepan. Add the onion and garlic, pop up a lid on and cook for a couple of minutes until the onions have softened.
Add the cauliflower and beetroot, season well with a couple of pinches of sea salt, the fennel seeds and freshly ground black pepper and cook for 3-5 minutes stirring occasionally.
Pour in enough stock to cover the vegetables (approximately 750ml), bring to the boil, pop the lid back on the pan, reduce the heat to low and cook for 15 -20 minutes.
Blend until smooth.
To serve, divide the soup between two plates, crumble over a generous amount of feta and top with the crispy bacon.