Roast Pepper, Tomato and Lime Soup
Okay, you've finally managed to sort yourself out with a really, really hot date...but things aren't quite working out as planned. Your mojo is failing you, your sense of humour sucks and you're suffering from a bad hair day....so to sort things out and to get you back on track invite your date around for dinner and be sure, no, no BE CERTAIN to cook this soup as a starter. Mmmm-Hhmmmm! Guaranteed to get that mojo working!

Serves 4

Ingredients
1 Tblsp olive oil
4 red peppers
4 garlic cloves, chopped
2 onions, sliced
5 Tblsp tomato puree
280g / 10oz plum tomatoes
450 ml / 3/4 pint chicken or vegetable stock
2 Tblsp brown sugar
2 limes, juice and zest of
Salt and pepper to taste
(4 tblsp yoghurt or creme fraiche for an optional garnish)

Mise-en-Place:
Preheat oven to gas mark 9 / 250°C / 500° F or turn the grill to high
Roast the peppers:
Brush the peppers with a little oil
Place in a roasting tray
Either beneath the grill or in the oven:
Cook until the skin has blackened all over (if you're using the grill be sure to turn the peppers from time to time for even colouring)
Place the peppers in a bowl, cover with cling film and allow them to steam for 5 - 10 minutes
Remove the peppers (reserve any juices to add to the soup for extra flavour) from the tray then place under running water and peel the black skin off
Discard the blackened skin, remove the stalk and seeds.
Set the peppers aside
Chop garlic, slice onions, roughly dice tomatoes,
Add the stock to hot water
Zest and juice the limes

Method:
In a saucepan over a medium to high heat:
Heat the olive oil
Add the garlic and cook until lightly browned
Add onion before the garlic colours too much and 'brown off'
Add tomato puree, cook 1-2 minutes. Stir frequently to prevent burning.
Add the fresh tomatoes, cook for 1-2 minutes to soften
Add remaining ingredients, simmer for 10 minutes
Blend all ingredients
Check seasoning
Serve

Adjust: This soup needs to be super fly so listen up, pay attention and get this right.!The soup needs to attain a balance of depth generated from the stock and tomatoes, this depth should be matched with the fresh succulent flavours of the roast peppers. The soup's overall flavours should be finished with the tanginess of the lime
Too sharp/ astringent: add more sugar
Too shallow: add more stock
Too bland: add more lime, salt and pepper
Too thin: add more peppers and tomato / or boil rapidly to reduce liquid volume
Too thick: add more water or stock

Presentation:
Pour the soup in a bowl, if it is of the right thickness it should support a teaspoon of creme fraiche or yoghurt. Place the yoghurt in the middle of the soup. If you wish you can garnish the yoghurt or creme with candied lime peel
Or
If the soup is too thin to support the garnish; thin the creme fraiche or yoghurt with a small amount of water, pour or use a squeezy bottle to pipe a zig-zag, circle, spiral or design of your choice onto the soup
Serve with crusty bread

Chef's Tip: When zesting any citrus wrap a length of baking parchment or grease proof paper over the grater. Grate the lime (press hard) through the paper, when you have finished you will find all the zest has stuck to the paper and not the grater (which we all know is a real pain in the backside to scrape free) all you have to do to release the zest from the paper is run a knife across the paper

Cowboy Trick: No space in the oven or grill? Place the peppers directly in a gas flame, turn frequently until coloured evenly. Finish recipe as usual