Red Kuri Squash Soup.
SQUEEZE IN SOME SQUASH.
Pumpkin gets all the press when it comes to Autumn but have you ever tried any of its lesser known relatives? Browse the stalls at your local farmer’s market (mine is Queen’s Park, London) from October onwards and you’ll see an array of colourful siblings to the pumpkin and all with slightly different flavours.
Red Kuri has a delicious chestnut taste and, unlike some of the more thick skinned squash, you don’t need to remove the skin before you cook it (hello minimum food waste). Eating the skin of vegetables is a whole other conversation but basically the best nutrients are often found in the skin of some fruits/vegetables or just underneath it, all the more reason to keep the squash’s jacket on.
Squash contains good levels of vitamins A, B, C, D and E and is also potassium rich. Vitamin C can help boost your progesterone levels and support healthy hormone balance so it’s good to get this tasty winter veg into the later part of your cycle, your luteal phase.
Red Kuri Squash Soup
Ingredients
- 280g Red Kuri squash, roughly chopped
- 250ml almond milk
- 400ml organic vegetable stock
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 tbsp hemp seeds
- 1tbsp smooth organic almond butter
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- seas salt & pepper to taste
- Garnish ideas: fresh parsley, roasted cherry or plum tomatoes, coconut yoghurt
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180 C. Line a roasting tin with parchment paper.
- Wash the squash and roughly chop, keeping the skin on (hello extra fibre!) . Place in a bowl and add the extra virgin olive oil, toss to combine. Spread the squash evenly onto the roasting tin and place in the oven for 40mins, turning half way through.
- Remove the squash from the oven and let it cool a little. Once cooled a little add to a blender with half the almond milk, hemp seeds and garlic. Blend until smooth, adding a little more almond milk if necessary. Once the squash has blended down add the remaining almond milk, vegetable stock and almond butter, blend to combine.
- Depending on the consistency you prefer, add more almond milk to thin out the soup. Add sea salt and pepper to taste. If eating straightaway then heat up your soup on the stove. Otherwise place in the fridge for later. This soup will thicken up more in the fridge, delicious if you love a thick, creamy soup and it's even good to eat cold!
- Get creative with your garnish, fresh parsley is a nice easy one but if you want to add some colour go for roasted tomatoes or a dollop of coconut yoghurt.