Spicy butternut squash and carrot soup

While recovering from a bug last week, I mentioned that I'd conjured up a pot of spicy butternut squash and carrot soup, which I've been eagerly slurping on every lunch time. The creamy sweetness of the roasted butternut squash and carrots, combined with the spicy, fragrant heat of the ginger and nutmeg, makes this the perfect soup for cold days, or when you're feeling slightly under the weather. What's more, this soup is low in fat and packed full of nutrients. Both butternut squash and carrots are loaded with vitamins and dietary fibre, keeping you full while being low in calories. Meanwhile, ginger is great for calming a sick stomach, so perfect for eating after a bug or for alleviating morning sickness (not that this applies to me!).

Making soup from scratch might seem like a laborious process, and sure, it might be slightly harder than dropping a tub of shop-bought soup into your shopping basket, but it really doesn't make you sweat much. I love the satisfaction of knowing exactly what's swimming in my soup. No E numbers, preservatives or sugar, just oodles of fresh veg, some seasoning and stock. I enjoyed this soup so much that I thought I'd share the recipe. It takes about 90 minutes to make, but the majority of that time is spent waiting impatiently for the rich flavours to combine into an oozy, fragrant liquid before tucking in, so not much work at all!

Feeds 4-6, dependent on greediness.



Ingredients

Olive oil
1 medium butternut squash
6-10 carrots
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 litre vegetable stock
salt and pepper to taste

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 190 degrees. Cut the butternut Squash lengthways and lay it cut side down on a baking sheet. Peel and slice the carrots lengthways and scatter them around the butternut squash.
2. Drizzle the butternut squash and carrots with olive oil and place in the over for 45 minutes
3. When cool, peel the butternut squash and slice into chunks. Slice the carrots into chunks too.
4. In a large pot, heat 1tbsp oil and fry the onions until golden. Add the garlic and ginger and fry for another minute.
5. Add the butternut squash, carrots, vegetable stock, nutmeg and a good douse of salt and pepper.
6. Bring to the boil, turn the heat down and simmer for 30 minutes
7. Ladle batches of the soup into a blender and blitz under smooth.
8. Add more salt and pepper if required. Serve with crusty bread and your favourite topping, such as toasted pumpkin seeds, croutons of fresh crusty bread.

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