Today we’re cooking a soup that’s basically a tasty little science demo: a cozy broth and a bunch of bits that float with more dignity than a boat on a good day. You look at the bowl and think, ‘okay, there’s physics in here, but also snack time’.

Ingredients:

• 1 litre chicken or veggie stock (whichever you’re feeling)
• 1 carrot, diced super small (to make orange “buoys”)
• 1 handful of peas (little floaty-pop balls, frozen is totally fine)
• 100 g small pasta: stars, letters, or short noodles (the crew)
• 2 slices of day-old bread, cubed (sailing croutons)
• 2 eggs (optional, for cheeky little egg “islands”)
• A small drizzle of olive oil
• Salt, pepper, and a pinch of paprika or turmeric if you fancy some colour
• Optional for the artsy souls: a little handful of grated cheese

Method:

Heat up the stock and, when it’s looking nice and lively, add the carrot and peas. Let it simmer gently until the carrot is tender, but not totally surrendered.

Add the pasta and let it do its thing.

In a separate pan, toast the bread cubes with olive oil, salt, and a tiny touch of paprika. They go golden, then they float like absolute champions.

If you want the egg, make it poché right in the soup over low heat, or whisk it in so you get little egg clouds.

Serve the soup, drop the croutons in at the end and, if you feel like it, finish with a rain of cheese. You’ll see some things float, some hover halfway, and you’ll become the captain of the spoon.

Forest tip: don’t stir like a maniac, you’ll sink the fleet. In soup and in life, sometimes the trick is to move things gently and let each bit find its own level.