Method

1. In a large heavy based saucepan, sauté onion in 3 tbsp of oil until translucent on medium heat.
2. Add garlic and sauté for a minute until fragrant.
3. Add broccoli, thyme, cashews and stock and replace lid on saucepan. Simmer on medium heat for 15 minutes until broccoli is tender.
4. Turn off heat. Remove thyme sprigs.
5. Using a stick blender, blend the soup until smooth. You can also use a normal blender, using a ladle to transfer from the soup pot to the jug to blend.
6. Once the soup is smooth, add wild rice and chicken. Simmer for 45 minutes until rice is tender.
7. While the soup is simmering, preheat oven to 180°C. Add almonds, 1 tbsp of oil, lemon juice and paprika to a baking tray and combine. The easiest way to do this is to ‘shuffle’ the almonds by quickly moving the tray side to side to coat them.
8. Roast almonds for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.
9. Season soup with salt and pepper to your taste then serve soup with a handful of roasted almonds on top and some additional thyme if you like.
10. You can also add a squeeze of grilled lemon over the soup for a citrus twist.