Spicy Pumpkin Soup by Elizabeth Silver

A warming, spicy soup - the perfect comfort food for shorter autumnal days. This nutritious recipe can be made with butternut squash or pumpkin and works really well with either.

Ingredients

• 2 tbsps olive oil
• 1 large onion, peeled and diced
• 2 large carrots, peeled and sliced
• 2 sticks celery, sliced
• 1 medium pumpkin or large butternut squash, peeled, cut into large dice with seeds removed and retained
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 2 tsps ground cumin
• 1-2 tsps dried chilli flakes
• 1 tsp dried mixed herbs
• 1 large potato, peeled and cut into chunks
• 300 ml coconut milk

Preparation

1. In a large saucepan heat the olive oil and add the onion, carrot and celery and sauté to soften without browning.
2. Add the diced butternut squash and sauté for 3-4 minutes until softened. Stir in the crushed garlic.
3. Stir in the spices and dried herbs and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add the potato chunks.
4. Pour in the coconut milk and top up to 3/4 full with vegetable stock stirring gently.
5. Bring to the boil and gently simmer until the vegetables are cooked and softened.
6. Puree until smooth with a hand blender or in a liquidiser. Adjust consistency according to preference with extra vegetable stock and add seasoning to taste. Bring back to the boil.
7. To roast the butternut squash seeds to give a lovely crunchy garnish for the soup, remove all stringy fibres from the seeds, rinse with water and pat dry. Place on a baking tray and drizzle over olive oil. Add salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper and toss the seeds in the oil to fully coat. Roast at 180oC for about 5 minutes or until golden brown and roasted in appearance.
8. When the hot soup is served in bowls, sprinkle with the roasted seeds and an extra drizzle of olive oil or chilli oil and garnish with sprigs of fresh parsley and freshly ground black pepper.