Start the year off with a healthy soup – it’s packed with vitamins and iron and tastes great! You could also have a go at making your own rolls. They’re so easy to make and a fun recipe for the kids to try. What shapes will they come up with?

For the Soup
Ingredients:
20g butter
2 medium onions, sliced
1 clove of garlic, sliced
2 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1cm cubes
1.25 litres chicken stock
300g baby spinach
Nutmeg
The juice of ½ a lemon
4 tbsp single cream

Method:
1. Heat the butter in a large saucepan over a medium-low heat and add the onions. Cook gently for 7-8 minutes or until soft (but not brown). Add the garlic and potato cubes and cook, stirring, for an extra 2 minutes.

2. Add the stock, increase the heat and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer gently for about 10 minutes. Add the spinach leaves, increase the heat again and simmer for a further 10 minutes.

3. Remove from the heat and allow to cool a little. Purée the soup in batches in a blender or with a hand-held blender until smooth. Season with freshly grated nutmeg.

4. Add lemon juice and season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Bring the soup back to the simmer and then stir in the cream.

For the Bread Rolls
Ingredients:
500g strong white bread flour
7g sachet fast action dried yeast
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
310ml lukewarm water
1 tbsp poppy/sesame seeds (optional)

Method:
1. Mix all the dry ingredients together and make a well in the middle.

2. Pour in half the water and stir using a fork, gradually bringing in the flour from around the sides of the bowl.

3. Add the rest of the water and continue stirring to form a dough. Add a little extra water if it is very dry.

4. Flour a work surface and your hands lightly.

5. Turn the dough out and start kneading it by pushing it away and folding it back. If the dough is too sticky add a little extra flour but not too much or it will make the bread dry. Keep kneading for about 5 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic.

6. Put the dough in a large bowl and cover with clingfilm. Leave to rise, preferably somewhere warm but not hot, until the dough has doubled in size. Depending on the surroundings this could be 30 minutes to 2 hours.

7. Preheat the oven to 220°C (fan 200°C/gas 6).

8. Knock the dough back. Knead again for about a minute.

9. When shaping the dough, make any shape you want but ensure all rolls are even sizes so they will be ready at the same time.

10. Put the rolls on a baking tray and leave to rise until the oven has heated up.

11. Brush the top of the rolls with a little milk or beaten egg and sprinkle seeds on top if you wish.

12. Bake the rolls in the oven. Depending on the size they could take any time from 7-15 minutes. When they are ready they will sound hollow if you tap them underneath.

13. Put the rolls on a wire rack to cool.