Borage and split pea soup

• By Claire Borg

For 6 people, you will need:

400g of dried green split peas (soaked overnight), one large carrot (scraped and chopped), two medium onions (chopped), brown bread, 1.75 litres of boiling water, sea salt, pepper, olive oil, 30 young borage leaves (washed), borage flowers (to garnish), sesame seeds.

In a deep pot, cook the onions and carrot in olive oil. Add the peas and boiling water, turn up the heat until the mixture reaches a rolling boil, then immediately turn down the heat again and leave the soup to simmer for around 90 minutes. Add the borage leaves, a pinch of salt and a sprinkling of pepper, and cook the soup for a further 30 minutes. Blend it until you have a very smooth consistency. Serve it with croutons of brown bread (cut the bread into small pieces and fry them), and with a sprinkling of sesame seeds and borage flowers.