It’s that time of year again where the leaves are changing into Autumnal colours and the mornings are getting crisper. During the colder months it is important that we nourish our bodies with warming homemade foods to help fight off the seasonal blues. The Danish live by a cultural concept called Hygge which means "a quality of coziness and comfortable conviviality that engenders a feeling of contentment or well-being." The Scots have a similar concept called Còsagach. Creating ‘coziness’ in the wintery months enhances our well-being and food is a key player in this. Think soups, stews and hot chocolate by the fire to get you through the colder winter months.
You might have already started getting your pumpkins for Halloween so I wanted to share this nutritious soup recipe so you can get the most out of your pumpkins. If you don’t have a pumpkin you can simply swap it out for the same amount of butternut squash.
Spiced Pumpkin Soup
Serves 4
Cooking time is 1 hr
Ingredients
1 pumpkin (or butternut squash), about 1.5-2kg (save the seeds – toast them in a dry pan to serve)
1tbsp garam masala
2tsp ground coriander
2tsp ground cumin
1 red chilli
3tbsp coconut oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 cm cube of fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
900ml veg stock
Method
STEP 1
Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Cut the pumpkin in half and remove the seeds with a spoon. Cut into wedges or chunks (keep the skin on) and spread out on a baking try. Put 2 tbsp of coconut oil into a pan and heat gently add the garam masala, and 1 tsp each of the coriander and cumin and mix. Drizzle over the pumpkin and toss well to coat in the spiced oil. Roast for 40-45 mins, turning halfway through cooking, until the pumpkin is very soft when pierced with a fork. Leave to cool on the tray for a few minutes.
STEP 2
Heat the remaining 1 tbsp coconut oil in a large saucepan and fry the onion with a pinch of salt for 10 mins until soft. Add the ginger, garlic and remaining spices and chilli, and fry for a few more minutes until fragrant. Pour in the stock and bring to a gentle simmer.
STEP 3
When the pumpkin is cool enough to touch, use a spoon to scoop the soft flesh from the skins. Add the soft pumpkin to the stock pan, discarding the skins. Remove from the heat and blitz the soup with a hand blender until creamy and smooth. Season to taste, adding extra chilli or garam masala if you like. Put back over a low heat and bring to a gentle simmer, before serving into bowls. Top with toasted pumpkin seeds and a drizzle of olive oil. Serve with a slice of toasted sourdough bread.
Toasting the pumpkin seeds:
Toss into a pan with a tbsp of heated coconut oil. You could add a tsp of smoked paprika and pinch of sea salt for extra flavour. Sprinkle over the top of your soup, then store the remaining in an air tight container for snacking on.
Recipe is adapted from @bbcgoodfood
