When I was a kid in the not-so-holy land, the only type of pumpkin – Dla’at in Hebrew, not as fun to say as pumpkin, or as Alex used to call it when he was a toddler pumpking – I knew was the classic big pumpkin. We didn’t have delicata, kabocha or acorn squashes and … but our pumpkins for some reason were more dense and flavorful than the pumpkins here in America. Well now we do.
You don’t have to roast the squash before you add it to the soup but when you do the heat caramelizes it and makes it extra sweet. Feel free to dice and add it straight to the pot with the rest of the veggies. It would still be delicious.
Fish sauce alternatives: oximoronly, I googled plant-based fish sauce and discovered Fysh, a fish sauce made from algae so I ordered a bottle. Algae I’m counting on you. Until the next soup xxs
coconut pumpkin soup
Ingredients
- 1 acorn squash - 1lb. pumpkin or medium butternut squash
- 2 tablespoons ghee or coconut oil
- 1 medium onion - diced
- 3 celery stalk - sliced
- 2 small carrots - sliced
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1-2 star anise
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce - optional
- Sea salt
- 1 can coconut milk
- 2 handful baby spinach or regular spinach chopped roughly
- 1 lime - optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F/200C. Cut the acorn squash in half and remove the seeds but don’t throw them away, put them in a colander and rinse them. Place the acorn squash on a baking tray lined with baking paper, skin facing up. Put the seeds on the tray too, sprinkle a bit of salt and bake until squash is tender, about 15 minutes. The seeds will toast in 10 minutes.
- In a medium pot melt the ghee or coconut oil over medium-low heat. Stir in the onion, celery, carrots and spices and saute for 5 minutes. Add 6 cups water, fish sauce and a pinch of salt and bring to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes then lower heat to simmer and cook until the acorn squash is ready.
- Let the squash to cool for a few minutes, then using a spoon scoop the its meat into the soup. You can also peel it and then adding it to the soup.
- Remove the star anise and pour in the coconut milk. Using a hand blender blitz the soup until it's partly chunky but mostly smooth.
- Add the baby spinach and cook on medium heat for 3 minutes then remove from the heat.
- Serve immediately with a few drops lime juice and the toasted seeds or store in the fridge up to 3 days.
