Creamy Roasted Pumpkin & Sage Soup

This post was originally intended for Friday, however, for logistical reasons beyond my control, I’m posting it today and the post I had planned for today will appear on Friday.

It doesn’t matter what time of year it is, I always enjoy eating soup – even when it’s 100F outside!  One of my favourite soups when I’m back in the UK is the Daylesford Organic Butternut, Sage & Honey Soup.  Not having access to a shop to buy this delicious soup prompted me to try and recreate it.  Butternut squash isn’t available in India, but pumpkin is, so I gave it a whirl to see how it would turn out with pumpkin and whilst not exactly the same, it is extremely tasty.  This soup is filling, nutritious and once made, provides a quick and easy lunch or supper, or a starter / appetiser ahead of the main event.  The Domestic Prince was a complete skeptic when I told him what was for supper one evening….but having had seconds, I think I can safely assume he likes it, and as we say in our house, it’s a keeper!

 

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 750g chopped pumpkin (approximately 2cm cubes)
• 3tbsp of olive oil
• 2 onions, finely chopped
• 2 – 3 crushed garlic cloves
• 500ml of vegetable stock
• 500ml of chicken stock
• 200ml cream (single or double)
• 30g of grated parmesan cheese
• 1 heaped tsp of finely chopped fresh sage
• Salt & pepper to season
• 3 rashers of bacon, cooked and chopped into small pieces (to garnish)

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180C.
2. Put the chopped pumpkin into a roasting tin and drizzle 2tbsp of the olive oil over the top and grind some salt and pepper for seasoning.  Toss the pumpkin around, making sure it’s all evenly covered in the olive oil.  Put in the oven and roast for 25 – 35 minutes, or until the outside of the pumpkin is just starting to char.
3. Heat the remaining 1tbsp of olive oil in a large saucepan and add the chopped onions and crushed garlic and cook for around 5 minutes, until the onion is just starting to brown in colour.
4. Once the roasted pumpkin is ready, add it into the saucepan with the onion and garlic, and with the heat on, mix them all together.
5. Add in the vegetable and chicken stock and simmer for 5 minutes.
6. Using either a hand blender or an upright blender, puree the pumpkin, onions, garlic and stock until there are no lumps of pumpkin or onions.
7. Take the pureed ingredients and sieve them into a clean saucepan.  This will ensure your soup is velvety smooth.
8. Add in the sage, cream and parmesan and simmer for 10 minutes.
9. If needed, add salt and pepper to season.
10. To serve, sprinkle on the small pieces of bacon on top of each portion.

Domestic Princess tips:

1. If you prefer butternut squash to pumpkin, simply swap the 750g of pumpkin for 750g of butternut squash.
2. Dried sage can be used instead of fresh sage.
3. The cream can be substituted for the same quantity of milk.
4. If using an upright blender for pureeing the soup, let the mixture cool down a bit, as otherwise you run the risk of the lid exploding off and getting scalded by the soup (I’m speaking from experience here!)
5. If you prefer a chunkier soup, omit the sieving stage at step 7.
6. Double the ingredients up to make a larger batch for freezing.
7. If you’re living in Bangalore, fresh sage can be bought from Namdharis.

I hope you enjoy this as much as we do!  What’s your favourite soup?  And unlike me, do you only eat soup in the colder months?

With much love

The Domestic Princess

xoxo