Mexican-Style Tortilla Soup With Crème Fraîche

Preheat the oven to 200°C/ 180°C (fan)/ gas 6

Peel and finely dice your red onion[s]

Heat a large, wide-based pot (preferably non-stick) with a drizzle of olive oil over a medium heat

Once hot, add the diced onion and cook for 4-5 min or until starting to soften

Meanwhile, boil a kettle

Top, tail and dice your courgette[s]

Deseed your pepper[s] (scrape the seeds and pith out with a teaspoon) and dice

Peel and finely chop (or grate) your garlic

Once the onion has softened, increase the heat to medium-high and add the diced courgette, diced pepper, ground smoked paprika, cumin seeds, cayenne pepper (can't handle the heat? Go easy!) and chopped garlic

Give everything a good mix up and cook for 6-7 min further or until the vegetables have started to soften

Whilst the vegetables are softening, dissolve your vegetable stock mix, chipotle paste (not a fan of spice? Just add a little!) and a pinch of sugar in 550ml [775ml] [1L] boiled water – this is your spicy stock

Chop your tortillas into triangle shapes (layer them up to speed up the process!)

Add the tortilla triangles to a baking tray (or two!) with a pinch of salt and a drizzle of olive oil

Give everything a good mix up, so the tortilla triangles are evenly coated in the oil and put the tray[s] in the oven for 6-8 min or until golden and crisp – these are your tortilla chips

Drain and rinse your black beans

Add the drained black beans, chopped tomatoes and spicy stock to the pot and cook for 6-8 min or until the soup has thickened slightly – this is your Mexican-style soup

While the soup is cooking, grate your cheddar cheese