Lynne’s Homemade and Homegrown Pumpkin Soup

Featuring my favourite no-peel pumpkin hack

This soup is everything I love about autumn in a bowl. It is cosy, creamy, packed with home grown goodness and best of all, it uses my little no-peel hack from Instagram. When you roast pumpkin or squash with the skin still on, it softens beautifully, keeps more nutrients and saves you the pain of battling a chunky vegetable with a peeler. Once roasted, the flesh practically jumps away from the skin. Zero faff and zero waste.

Ingredients (serves 4)

• 1 kg home grown pumpkin, deseeded but unpeeled

• 400 g butternut squash, also unpeeled if you like

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 teaspoon paprika

• A pinch of chilli flakes (optional)

• 1 whole garlic clove

• 1 litre vegetable stock

• 1 can coconut milk

• Salt and pepper to taste

• Optional toppings: toasted pumpkin seeds, extra coconut milk, fresh sage or thyme

Method

• Heat the oven to 200°C.

  
  

• Prep your veg by cutting the pumpkin and squash into chunks. Remove the seeds but leave the skins on.

  
  

• Season and roast. Pop the veg onto a roasting tray with the whole garlic clove, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle over paprika, chilli flakes, salt and pepper. Toss everything together.

  
  

• Roast for 30 minutes or until everything is soft, golden and smelling utterly delicious.

  
  

• Scoop the flesh. Remove the tray from the oven. The pumpkin and squash will now be beautifully soft, so just scoop the flesh straight out of the skins. Tip all the roasted flesh into a large pan, along with the roasted garlic.

  
  

• Add the liquid. Pour in the vegetable stock and the coconut milk.

  
  

• Blend until smooth. Use a stick blender in the pan or transfer to a blender. Blend to your preferred texture.

  
  

• Heat and serve. Warm the soup gently for a few minutes, taste, season and serve with your favourite toppings.

Lynne’s Notes

• Leaving the skins on is not laziness, it is clever cooking. More nutrients, more flavour, less mess.

• If you want a thicker soup, use less stock. If you like it silkier, add more coconut milk.

• This freezes beautifully so always make extra. Future you will be thrilled