Roasted Pumpkin Soup with Asparagus is a winter warmer that hits the spot. I started to make this soup after Halloween with the overload of pumpkins form the children activities. It was a hit so now make it for most of the year. If I cant find pumpkins then I use butternut squash and roast it in the same way. Roasting the pumpkin I find brings out all of the amazing flavours that boiling loses. Add the flavours of the paprika, garlic and rosemary and you have a brilliant winning team.
Serve as a soup, starter or main dish with crusty bread to dunk afterwards. This vegetarian and vegan friendly recipe is ideal for a thermos. Heat it up, pour it in and after watching a game of rugby on a cold touch line it’s much needed.
Roasted Pumpkin Soup with Asparagus can be made in advance with the exception of the asparagus. However they only take a matter of minutes to cook. So while the soup is being warmed up, the asparagus is cooking and hey presto its’ ready. Don’t forget, you can use the seeds you removed. Just soak the seeds in a bowl of water to clean and dry those that rise to the top. Toast them and use as a garnish. Also the skin can be coated with cinnamon and nutmeg for a wonderful bowl of crisps. Nothing gets wasted.
Roasted Pumpkin Soup with Asparagus
Ingredients
Soup Ingredients
- 800 g pumpkin
- 2 cloves garlic peel
- 1/2 large onion peel/slice
- 1 sprigs rosemary
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- 375 ml vegetable stock chicken stock
- 2 tbsp oil
- 25 g pumpkin seeds toasted
- salt to taste
- ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Slice the pumpkin into quarters and remove the seeds and skin. Hang on to the seeds.800 g pumpkin
- When the seeds are removed, slice the pumpkin into 1 inch/2.5cm pieces.
- Preheat the oven to 220C/400F/Gas Mark 6.
- Place the pumpkin into a baking tray and add the onion and garlic, paprika and rosemary and stir to combine.2 cloves garlic, 1/2 large onion, ½ tsp smoked paprika, 1 sprigs rosemary
- Drizzle the oil over the vegetables and season with a good pinch of both salt and pepper.2 tbsp oil, salt, ground black pepper
- Stir again making sure everything is coated and pop into the hot oven for 30 minutes or until the pumpkin is soft.
- Pour hot water into your serving bowls.
- Remove the pumpkin from the oven and remove the rosemary stalk, it’s done its job.
- Retrieve a few small pieces of pumpkin to garnish the soup.
- With the rest, transfer to a food blender/processor together with the vegetable stock and tomato puree and blend until lovely and smooth. I f you have too much for your processor, I transfer everything into a large saucepan over a medium heat and use a hand blender. If the soup is too thick, add a little water or a little more vegetable stock to thin.375 ml vegetable stock
- Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.
- Empty the serving bowls and wipe dry before pouring the lovely hot soup.
- Serve immediately with a few pumpkin pieces, scattering of toasted pumpkin seeds.25 g pumpkin seeds
- Enjoy this winter warmer.
Asparagus
- Remove the woody end of the asparagus either by snapping or cutting. If you take an end in each hand and gently bend the asparagus, it will snap in the right place towards to base of the stem.6 stems asparagus
- Line a small baking tray with foil and add the trimmed asparagus. Drizzle with oil and seasoning with salt and pepper and add the minced garlic and lemon zest.1 clove garlic, oil, salt, ground black pepper, 1/2 medium lemon
- Pop in the same oven as the pumpkin and roast for 10 minutes. Slice and serve in the soup.
