There are days when the wind is blowing, rain is drizzling on the roof and all I feel like doing is curling up on the sofa with a good book and a cup of soup.
I'm lucky then that my family has always loved 'Papa's pumpkin soup' so I usually have a big batch in the freezer just waiting to be warmed up. Other than being a favourite comfort food, a good vegetable soup is a nutrient dense meal which makes it great for anyone who's unwell, or doesn't have much of an appetite. One portion will give you around three serves of your daily veg in one go!
The mixture of orange veg is a great source of beta-carotene, vitamin c, potassium, magnesium and fibre. A home-made veggie stock is best to use, but if you're time poor and choose to use a store bought stock, make sure you use a low-sodium version. You can also roast the veggies first, for a delicious depth of flavour. To be upfront, the amount of turmeric in this (and for that matter most recipes) is not going to give you a high enough therapeutic dose to reduce inflammation. Even so, adding a dollop of low fat yoghurt to the top of your soup will enhance the absorption of any fat-soluble components such as the turmeric, and beta-carotene. This recipe is simple yet packed with flavour. Add and combine different veg, herbs and spices as you wish, but this is my go-to. Enjoy.
Ingredients (about 6 serves) 1/2 Butternut pumpkin (about 500g) peeled, roughly chopped
400g Kent pumpkin peeled, roughly chopped
1 medium sweet potato, peeled, roughly chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled, roughly chopped
1 litre low sodium vegetable stock
2 bay leaves
1 tsp turmeric powder
Low-Fat yoghurt to dollop
Toasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds) garnish
Method
Place the pumpkin, sweet potato, carrots, bay leaves and turmeric in a large soup pot or slow cooker. Pour in stock to just cover veggies. If you need to top up with more liquid, add just enough water to cover.
Bring to a light boil then reduce heat. Simmer for approximately 45 minutes until all veggies are soft. Turn off heat and remove bay leaves. Using a stick blender, process the veg until you have a beautiful silky smooth soup. Add fresh ground pepper if you like more seasoning, but there is no need to add salt, especially if you've used a store bought stock. Even low-sodium varieties have enough salt to season the soup well.
Serve in your favourite soup mug or bowl and dollop with a generous spoon of low-fat yoghurt and sprinkle with chopped pepitas for a bit of crunch! Delicious!
Any left-overs can be frozen for 4-6 months.
Nutrition Breakdown
This breakdown was compiled with Foodworks v10. It doesn't include the extra protein and calcium you'd get with the yoghurt dollop but even so it can't be denied this soup will make your body sing!
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