Veggie soups are one of my favorite dishes as well, I also like make a huge pot of soup so that it'll last for the whole week. You don't have cold winters there, but for me soups are all what I'd want to eat during winter, haha!

Here in Finland the prices depend a lot on the season. During winter frozen vegetables can be a better solution than buying fresh produce, since you'll save money and there are more nutrients in the frozen ones! :)