Pumpkin & Butternut Squash Soup with Coconut Milk & Saffron
Serves 12 people. Cooking time: 1 hour 30 min.
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Grated/ground nutmeg
- 50 g unsalted butter
- 1.5 kg pumpkin & butternut squash, peeled, deseeded and diced
- 2 large onions, finely chopped
- 1 tsp saffron
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp coriander, finely chopped
- Fresh bay leaves
- Grated fresh ginger
- 500 ml single cream (optional)
- 400 ml coconut milk
- 500 ml vegetable or chicken stock or water
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
- Soup: Peel and deseed the pumpkins and butternut squash. Roast them in chunks in the oven with nutmeg, black pepper and salt sprinkled on them. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over a moderate-high heat. When the oil is hot add the onion, garlic and ginger and cook it for a couple of minutes until the onion is soft and translucent. Add the fresh coriander and roasted pumpkin to the pan and cook the mixture while stirring for a couple of minutes. Add the coconut milk and stock or water and the bay leaf to the pan and bring it slowly to a boil. Skim off any “scum†that may appear at the surface. Reduce the soup to a simmer and leave it to cook gently for 30 minutes, stirring it at regular intervals. The soup is ready when the pumpkin and butternut squash are cooked and tender. Remove the pan from the heat, remove the bay leaf and allow it to cool slightly.
- Finalizing the soup:
- Ladle some soup into a food processor or blender (be careful not to overfill it or you will end up with a large mess). Puree the soup until smooth and return it to a clean pot/pan. Repeat this until you have pureed all the soup.. the soup should be a thick pourable consistency. If it is too thick, add more coconut milk, stock or water...
- Season the soup with salt and black pepper to your taste and reheat before serving it or place it in a covered container and refrigerator until ready to reheat and serve.
- To serve: Ladle the soup into soup bowls and garnish with fresh coriander leaves. Serve the soup with bread of your choice.