A fall soup

You are going to love this one! 😀

I have to say, this is probably the best vegetable soup I have made in a long time.  It’s so good that I wish I could just have one more bowl.  I am so full!!!  😀  And it smells amazing!  Wow!  Super delicious.  It’s loaded with nutrients and it’s Whole30 compliant.  It’s healthy and filling so a couple of bowls will make a good flavourful meal.

Last night I roasted a whole banana squash in the oven.  Cut it in four pieces, drizzled a little olive oil and roasted it at 350*F until soft.  After I picked up my son from pre-school this morning, I decided what I would do with the squash – soup!

Here’s what I used: (remember this is what I had in my fridge; you can modify the ingredients depending on what you have in your fridge)

1 sweet potato
1 sweet onion
3 cloves garlic
3 carrots (medium size)
1/2 parsnip (medium size)
1 green bell pepper
1/3 head cauliflower (medium size)
1 banana squash (medium size), roasted (or raw cut in small cubes allowing it to boil quickly)
Olive oil
Black pepper (I used crushed coarse pepper, but it’s up to you)
Salt
Turmeric
A pinch of cayenne pepper (optional)
Sunflower or Pumpkin seeds for decoration

You will need a immersion blender for the soup.

All veggies are cut in small pieces or cubes.  In a pot (where you want your soup to cook) sauté the onion, garlic, pepper, carrots, parsnip in some olive oil.  Fill a separate pot with water and put it on the stove to boil – enough water for the soup.  I never pour cold water over my veggies for a soup because it stops their cooking and then it has to be restarted again.  Also I find that pouring cold water sort of “washes them down” and they lose some of their flavour.  So boil some water on the side while your veggies are sautéing.

Once the onion is “clear” and soft, add the cauliflower and sweet potato.  Mix so they can get covered in some of the “juices” 😀  By that time your water should be boiled so pour it over the vegetables.  Use as much water as you would like.  Make sure it covers the vegetable and allows them to boil without being “crammed”.  Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to let it simmer.

Once the veggies are soft add your squash.  Scoop it from the pieces your roasted leaving the skin behind.  Let the soup boil for a few minutes until the squash blends in.  Add salt to taste.  The soup will be quite sweet from the carrots and squash.  So add as much salt as you like.  Turn off the heat.

Use your immersion blender to blend everything together.  Even if you don’t blend everything perfectly, it’s ok.  Chunks will be a nice delicious surprise in your bowl 🙂

After the soup is blended, add your turmeric, black pepper, a pinch of cayenne pepper and stir to incorporate.

Serve in bowls with sunflower or pumpkin seeds for decoration.

This soup tends to make a big quantity.  So if you can’t finish it, you can freeze the rest. 🙂

Enjoy!