Pumpkin Soup

Pumpkin Soup - as much a necessity as a pleasure! This week has been one of a kind in multiple, not so nice ways. Lockdown 2 has hit across many European countries and, much more sadly, Vienna was the target of a dreadful attack on Monday evening.

Today was a day for staying inside and making the most of the kitchen I've (happily) been too busy to exploit in recent weeks.

With a pumpkin on the edge of decease, a thousand onions in my cupboard (why don't you sell singles @Lidl?) and a blender borrowed from my flatmate, I attempted my first soup! 'Attempted' makes it sound like there was difficulty involved when it was in fact quicker than making a sandwich but would it be a CC post without a bit of exaggeration?!

Ingredients

- 1/2 a pumpkin (any type)

- 1 onion

- some fresh ginger (I couldn't actually taste it so you can probs leave out) - curry powder, turmeric, paprika (do NOT leave out!)

- 1 veggie stock cube dissolved in 300ml boiling water

- Seasoning to taste

Method

1. Preheat an oven to 200C and line a baking tray with foil.

2. Chop the pumpkin into wedges (2cm thick), place on the baking tray and drizzle with oil.

3. Roast for 15-25 mins until soft.

4. Once cooked, trim off the skin.

5. Now fry up an onion in a big pan, add all the spices. Fry until soft then add the pumpkin pieces.

6. Transfer to a blender/sturdy bowl with a stick blender and whizz it up to your desired consistency. Add the stock while you do so.

7. Reheat if it's cooled down and enjoy with toast ideally or cheese and gherkins if, like me, you didn't plan on being locked down quite so soon and scarily!

Enjoy :)