Pumpkin soup

Autumnal weather has arrived and Halloween is just around the corner. What better way to warm up on a chilly day than pumpkin soup? Especially when you can pick up a pumpkin in your nearest food store for £1. We’ve also added a little Love Local twist to spice up this season’s hottest dish.

Serves 6

Ingredients

1 Co-op pumpkin

4 tbsp Ownsworth's rapeseed oil

2 onions, finely chopped

700ml vegetable or chicken stock

142 ml pot of double cream

3 tsp Mr Huda’s Universal curry paste

Handful of pumpkin seeds straight from your pumpkin (optional)

Gadbsy’s multi-seeded loaf to serve

Method

1. Heat 2tbsp of Ownsworth's rapeseed oil in a large saucepan, then gently cook 2 chopped onions for 5 minutes until soft.

2. Add 1kg of peeled, deseeded and chopped pumpkin to the saucepan, cooking for 8 minutes. Stir occasionally until it starts to soften and turn golden.

3. Pour 700ml of the stock into the pan, then season with salt and pepper. Bring to the boil then simmer until the squash is very soft. Pour the double cream into the pan and bring to the boil. To add really heat it up, add 3 tsp of Mr Huda’s Universal curry paste to the mixture before blending. Puree the mixture together with a blender.

4. For the pumpkin seed topping, wash and dry the seeds, drizzle over the remaining oil and sprinkle with salt. Pop them in the oven on a low heat for 10 minutes to crisp.

To serve, scatter pumpkin seeds on the soup and slice up some Gadsby’s multi-seeded loaf for the perfect autumnal accompaniment.

Check out our Halloween inspiration page for more spooktacular ideas...