Thrifty garden goodness- pea pod soup

Pea Pod Soup

Ingredients
a colander's worth of empty pea pods (use fresh pods from your garden)
water
1 large onion
1 large or 2 small potatoes
a handful of fresh mint leaves (from your own garden if possible)
1 clove garlic
1 Tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper
garnish with chopped green onions and/or cream or yoghurt




Method
-Peel and chop the onion, then soften slightly in your soup pot with the olive oil.
-Dice your potato (you can peel it if you like, but it's not necessary) and chop the garlic or just crush it with the blade of a broad knife. Add to the softened onion and let it cook for a couple minutes.
-Then add the mint leaves and pea pods (whole), plus some salt and pepper.
-Cover with enough water to cover all the ingredients (probably about 2 cups depending on the size of your pot- don't choose too large a pot for your ingredients) and bring to a boil.
-When the potatoes are crumbly-soft take the pan off the heat and blend with a hand-blender, or in portions in a regular blender.
-Strain the soup through a fine sieve into a large, clean bowl or pan. You can use your fingers or the back of a spoon to help work though the potato bits if necessary. Remove all the fibrous material from the sieve and put it in your compost container.
-Voila! Bright green soup!

Serves 3-4