Now that there’s a definite chill in the air, it’s the perfect excuse to cancel your plans and spend a cosy evening indoors eating delicious food.
And it really doesn’t get much better – and easier – than a hearty, warming soup.
Pumpkins are one of the most popular soup ingredients around this time of year, as they create a creamy and warm base for your dish that always hits the spot no matter what you pair it with.
One particular recipe, created by celebrity chef Jamie Oliver, uses this in-season produce along with sweet apples that results in a comforting bowl that’s bursting with flavour.
And even better, it couldn’t be easier to make too.
Jamie said: “With vibrant pumpkin and sweet apple, this simple, seasonal soup is pretty hands off – you just chuck it all together, roast, then blitz until you have a creamy, velvety soup.”
It’s excellent paired with Jamie’s cheese and sage croutons too, which add a tasty crunch to your soup. He added: “My cheesy sage croutons are a game-changer and take this humble autumnal dish to the next level.”
The recipe was shared on the Tesco Real Food website, and with just 10 minutes of prep time, it’s perfect for those busy evenings when you don’t have the time to stand over the hob for ages.
It’s also freezable, so you can just pop any leftovers in the freezer to save for a later date when you’re really pushed for time. Here’s everything you need to make this recipe, which serves six.
Jamie Oliver’s pumpkin soup
Ingredients
- One pumpkin or butternut squash (about 1.2kg)
- Two onions
- Olive oil
- Two eating apples
- Two garlic cloves
- 10g fresh sage
- 200g stale bread
- 50g Cheddar
- One vegetable stock cube
Method
Preheat the oven to gas 6, 200°C, fan 180°C. Scrub the pumpkin or squash, slice in half and scoop out the seeds, then roughly chop the flesh. Peel and slice the onions into wedges. Chuck it all into a large roasting tin, drizzle over two tbsp olive oil, then roast for 30 mins or until soft and gnarly.
Meanwhile, core the apples and slice into wedges, and bash and peel the garlic cloves. When the time’s up, chuck them all into the tin with a few sage leaves and roast for a further 10 minutes.
Slice the bread into 2cm chunks and put on a baking tray, then pick over the remaining sage leaves. Drizzle with 1 tbsp oil, toss to coat and spread out into a single layer. Finely grate over 20g of the Cheddar and bake for five minutes or until golden and crisp.
Remove the pumpkin tin from the oven and tip everything into a large pan over a medium heat. Crumble in the stock cube, pour over 1ltr of boiling water and grate in the remaining Cheddar. Bring to the boil and cook for a couple of minutes, then remove from the heat and blitz until smooth.
Season to perfection, then divide between bowls and top with the croutons and crispy sage. Finish with a drizzle of olive oil, if you like.
