Do Cook

I’ve just got back from an afternoon of almost sailing. We were all set to go for the first race of the summer season, but overnight we’d had snow to sea level, there was a lumpy swell rolling up the river and the wind was gusty. We took a vote and decided we’d be happier to sit on the bluff and watch the crews that were made of hardier stuff than we were.

Even though we didn’t sail, we were standing outside for a good couple of hours and the wind was beyond bone chilling, of which the best cure I could think of was soup.

Short of heating up a can, pumpkin soup is the one of the easiest soups to make I’ve detailed what ingredients I use but you should feel free to to substitute ingredients and make changes to suit your own tastes.

I’ve avoided using quantities where it’s not important. For example when I buy the pumpkin it all goes in the pot, I don’t weigh it or measure it, but aim to have about three parts pumpkin in the pot to one part potato. As a guide allow one cup of pumpkin per serving. I always make more than enough so I can enjoy the leftovers.
The roasting of the pumpkin adds a little to the flavour, but the main reason I do it is that it’s so much easier to peel once it’s been baked.
Ingredients
Pumpkin cut into 2 inch chunks
Sweet Potato, peeled and cut into two inch chunks (or any other potato)
2 Celery Stalks (sliced)
1 litre of chicken stock
Water
1 large onion
Olive oil
Freshly ground salt and pepper
1 teaspoon Curry powder

Method

1. Place the pumpkin on an oven tray and drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place into a 180 degC oven for about 30 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool enough so you can peel it.

2. Once you have peeled the pumpkin, place it into a large stockpot with the potato, celery, onion and chicken stock. For a thick soup add just enough water to cover the vegetables. If you like it a bit runnier then allow an inch or two of extra water in the pot

3. Bring to the boil, and simmer for one hour, stir in curry powder and remove from the heat.

4. Use a stick mixer (ie Bamix) to puree the soup to a smooth consistency. You can also use a blender to process for this step but it’s a good idea to let the soup cool or you may repaint your kitchen ceiling a new shade of pumpkin. I use the stick mixer because it means a lot less washing up.

5. Return the soup to the hotplate and bring to serving temperature.

6. Serve in soup bowls, garnish with flat leaf parsley.

It really is the easiest soup in the world to make, serve it up with some crusty bread or freshly made savoury scones.

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