Sunday Soup

Through autumn and winter we have soup for dinner on Sundays...yes I know it is Saturday; I've upset the cart.

For years it has been the rhythm - my beloved, my big girl and I have taken turns choosing what the soup will be on our week. There is a real joy in the simplicity of Sunday soup - I don't have to think what to cook for dinner (or what pack the big girl for lunch the next day), it is generally no trouble (tho French onion takes some peeling and slicing!) each of us feels we have a say in what fills our bellies and it is warming to the soul - I love soup.

So, you know I told you I have joined Food Connect and the fresh farm produce that I unpack each Tuesday is fabulous BUT because of the nature of the business we don't choose what is in the box; we choose a style of box but what is in it is up to the seasons, the farmers and luck. I'm good with that; the big girl's nose is a little out of place.

We have sort of lost the choice element of Sunday soup...she can still choose as long as it comes out of the box...

The first week it was my turn anyway so I looked in the box and we had corn chowder - Yum!
Last week, I told my girl she could choose pumpkin or sweet potato "but that is not my choice!" she wailed "well that is what is in the box" I said. There may have been some muttering or stomping but I stood firm - the food is local and fresh - we are cooking with what the seasons give us.

She has the most gloroious outdoor classroom at school - with a kitchen garden - (I will try to remember to take some pictures of it next time I take my camera to school)  on Friday last week she presented me with half a pumpkin - picked by her that morning (grown from a seed planted by her and her class mates earlier this year) so it sealed the deal - pumpkin soup it was; but not just any old pumpkin soup.

I made her autumn spiced pumpkin and cannellini bean soup because we got fresh ginger in our box too. It was so creamy and delicious so I thought I would share the recipe with you. I flicked through Jude Blereu's Coming Home to Eat - Wholefood for the Family for a bit of inspiration and then made do with what I had to hand -

Pumpkin..i don't know what type it was but I used 3/4 of it... it wasn't massive - peeled and chopped roughly

a tbs of gee or butter (maybe it was 2tbs)

1 brown onion, finely sliced

2-3 garlic cloves, chopped roughly

1 inch bit of fresh ginger, grated

a grating (or three or four) of fresh nutmeg

tsp ground cumin

tsp ground coriander

420g tin of cannellini beans (drained and rinsed well)

1L of chicken stock

yoghurt or quark for serving (optional)

Melt the butter or gee in a big pot, add the onion, garlic and ginger and cook gently for a few minutes so that they glisten rather than fry. When the onion is soft add the nutmeg, cumin and coriander stirring through for about a minute - then add the chopped chunks of pumpkin stirring to coat the pieces in the fragrant spices.

Then pour in the stock, stir, put on the lid and leave it at a gentle simmer for about an hour. Add in the cannellini beans and wait for them to warm through before blending the soup well, using a stick blender.

Serve into bowls, add a dollop of yoghurt or quark (it was in the fridge!) a generous twist of freshly ground black pepper and enjoy.

Oh back to Saturday... we had soup tonight, the family was agast! even friends who popped in today and asked what I was cooking exclaimed "but it is Saturday!" when I answered "potato and leek soup with parmesan dumplings" Yes it is Saturday but we are going out for dinner tomorrow and I didn't want to miss out on soup night... and there we a lot of potatoes in the box.