Chestnut Chorizo Soup

Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons oil
• 1 large Spanish onion, diced
• 1 medium carrot, diced
• 1 celery stick, diced
• 1 gram 120 (4 oz) mild chorizo cut into cm cubes
• 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves (I use 1 teaspoon of dried sometimes)
• 2 smalls dried red chillies, crushed (I omit these because of the kids)
• 1 can of chopped tomatoes (or 2 roughly chopped fresh tomatoes)
• 500 grams (about a pound) cooked, peeled chestnuts (although you can get them fresh here, I usually use vacuum packed because I detest pee
• 4 tablespoons 20 saffron threads infused in 3- boiling water
• 1 liter (about 2 cups) of water
• sea salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium heat
2. Add the carrots, onions, celery, chorizo and a pinch of salt. Fry for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. When vegetables and chorizo have caramelized and turned quite brown, add the garlic, cumin, thyme and chili (if using). Cook for one more minute
4. Add the tomato and after two more minutes, the chestnuts. Stir.
5. Add the saffron infused liquid and the water and simmer for 10 minutes.
6. Remove from heat and mash (I use my blender on a stick but you could also use a potato masher) until the soup is nearly smooth but still has a bit of texture. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

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