Pumpkin Soup
The secret to a really good pumpkin soup is to roast the pumpkin wedges first. Pumpkin can be a little mild (or dare I say tasteless), so you need to build a nice bit of flavour into the base of the soup.
SERVES
4
PEOPLE
Ingredients
1kg pumpkin, deseeded and cut into wedges
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp coriander seeds
Olive oil
2 onions, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 red chilli, finely chopped
Thumb-sized piece of ginger, grated
700ml hot vegetable stock
1 tsp miso paste
Salt and pepper
4 tbsp crème fraîche, to serve
Handful of pumpkin seeds
Method
Preheat the oven to 200°C. Toast the cumin and coriander seeds in a dry frying pan over a medium heat for a minute or two until fragrant, then crush them in a pestle and mortar.
Put the pumpkin wedges on a large baking tray, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle over the spices and season with salt and pepper.
Toss to coat and roast for 35-40 minutes, until soft and caramelised at the edges. When cool enough to handle, scoop the flesh away from the skin.
Meanwhile, heat a little olive oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat.
Add the onions and sweat for about 10 minutes until soft but not coloured.
Add the garlic, chilli and ginger and cook for a further couple of minutes.
Add the roasted pumpkin, the hot stock and the miso paste, stirring to dissolve the miso. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes.
Blend the soup until smooth , adding a splash of stock or water if it is too thick. Season to taste.
Toast the pumpkin seeds in a dry pan for a few minutes until they start to pop.
Ladle the soup into warmed bowls , spoon in a generousteaspoon of cream fraiche and scatter over the toastedpumpkin seeds.
