Triple star warming, pain-fighting pumpkin soup

All hail the MIGHTY pumpkin!

You might think I’m exaggerating but seriously. Pumpkin has got to be one of the most underrated vegetables.

And I’m not talking about carving them for Halloween, I mean for actual eating. When I was growing up my grampie would often bring pumpkin home from his little farm and my Ma would cook it with spices and we’d have it as a side dish with roti (Indian bread) for dinner or breakfast.

This month I went pumpkin picking with friends at Pumpkin Moon in Kent. These guys do pumpkinology really, really well. It made me nostalgic, seeing all shapes, sizes and colour pumpkins as far as my eyes could see. An to see families picking pumpkins together in the rain on a chilly Sunday afternoon. (Ouuuu givin myself goosebumps just remembering it).

Anyway, if you’re one of those people who says pumpkin is bland or just takes on the flavour of everything else, then this recipe is for you. If you’re after a clean, pain fighting dish with lots of health benefits, this is for you.

If you didn’t know, among other things pumpkin is rich in vitamins A, C, E (amazing for healthy glowing skin), magnesium (fab for fighting fibromyalgia) and more potassium than a banana.

Yass! It’s a high fibre, low calorie gem. Ahh!!! I’m so excited to share my Triple star warming pumpkin soup.

If you try it and like it,  hit the buttons below to share with your friends and on social media so we can share the love.

Gentle hugs x

Cover image by Kerstin Wrba

Slider image by Steve Halama

Print Recipe

Triple star warming, pain-fighting pumpkin soup

Servings

Ingredients

• 2 pumpkins (or squash) Medium sized. You can reduce the quantities if you want to make less.
• 2 medium sized sweet potatoes
• 1 large onion
• 1 finger size piece of ginger
• 1 turmeric root Better to use the root if you can find it. I get mine at Tesco or Ocado.
• 300ml double cream You can use a cream alternative like Oatly or cashew milk
• Salt to taste
• Home made hot sauce to taste (optional)
• Dash ground cumin to taste (optional)

Servings Ingredients 2 pumpkins (or squash) Medium sized. You can reduce the quantities if you want to make less. 2 medium sized sweet potatoes 1 large onion 1 finger size piece of ginger 1 turmeric root Better to use the root if you can find it. I get mine at Tesco or Ocado. 300ml double cream You can use a cream alternative like Oatly or cashew milk Salt to taste Home made hot sauce to taste (optional) Dash ground cumin to taste (optional)

Instructions

1. Peel pumpkins. This may seem tricky but with experience it gets better. I now use a standard potato peeler which does the job (peel away from you lengthways). Cut the pumpkin in half (be careful with the knife), then quarters. Scoop out the seeds.

   
2. Chop pumpkin into half inch slices and put in the oven to roast for 35 minutes or until it gets colour and you can smell that lovely flavour.

   
3. While pumpkin is roasting, slice sweet potatoes, and chop onions, ginger root and turmeric root and set aside.

   
4. When pumpkin is finished roasting, remove from oven and set aside. In a large pot/pan heat a few tablespoons olive oil and add onions, ginger and turmeric root. Saute for a few minutes until the onions get a little colour.
5. Add in the roasted pumpkin slices and sliced sweet potatoes. Add the cream and cover partially with a lid on a low to medium heat. Monitor to make sure it doesn't tip over. At this point I tidied the kitchen and did other bits while the magic happened. Add a little water (half cup) if needed.
6. When the sweet potatoes are soft to mash, use a hand blender to whizz everything. Add salt, ground cumin and hot sauce to taste. You might be tempted to add lots of water but be careful not to add too much as the richness of this soup is in its thickness too.

   

Recipe Notes

This soup has alot of stretching power ha, meaning you could feed a multitude with it! I'd freeze some but I used it for work lunch all that week, and shared with friends. If you want to do a smaller batch, just halve everything, but I'd still be liberal with the ground ginger as this is important.