In your face winter!

The green, exploratory fingers of my daffodils have started poking through, huddled still and stiff against the chill, February winds.

I spent some time looking for the young buds last week, having forgotten, of course, where I’d planted the bulbs in the first place
last Autumn. There are clusters where I didn’t expect to be clusters and then nothing where’d I thought I’d see something. Maybe some decided against venturing out and upwards into the recent, frigid winds. And who can blame them?

I went for a walk last week and the best I can say is that it was phresh. In the absence of a survival suit I’d have paid a pretty penny for long-johns and a hot water bottle and better still a lift home in a warm car. By the time I made it back to the house, there were certain parts of my anatomy which were so cold they had since stopped complaining and I wondered if they’d ever work again. Luckily I had made soup the night before, the deep ochre stuff you can see in the picture and though I would rather have bathed in its heat, I made do with a large mug full and a hunk of stale bread – buttered of course.

Sweet and only slightly bitter but rich in butterscotch-y goodness, my roasted butternut squash soup was the perfect antidote to the worst of last week’s windchill factor. As warming as a woolly jumper and as smooth as silk, I enjoyed its central heating so much, I deigned to enjoy a second mug and yet another slice of that stale buttery bread.

Would the soup have been as satisfying if I hadn’t been chilled to the bone during my morning walk? Probably not. But still and all, it’s certainly a soup which lends itself to days when it’s better to be on the warm side of the window looking out.

Did you know that a butternut squash is botanically a fruit? It is and specifically speaking, it’s a berry. You’re not likely to see it in compote form though and most often, it’s treated as a vegetable in cooking, roasted or baked or fried.

A favourite side of my mother’s, her roasted butternuts are often accompanied with garlic and a winder herb. I prefer mine in soup format, roasted first and then whizzed up with a handblender with some stock as lubrication.

I actually made this soup twice in as many weeks and I’ve tried it two ways, first with vegetable stock and then with chicken stock. After careful consideration (four portions altogether), I actually prefer it with vegetable stock as I think it gives the butternut space to shine. The chicken stock version was just too chicken-y.

Your best plan for maximum butternut enjoyment is to make your own stock from scratch but sometimes life’s foibles don’t always allow for such preparation and a veggie stock pot has to do – and there’s nothing wrong with that.

My version of butternut squash is combined with its best allium friends, onions and garlic and because I want to highlight its earthy provenance, I use smoked paprika. The final bowl can also be enhanced with some natural yoghurt or cream or crème fraiche, croutons or even crispy onions. Sometimes though, all you need is that stale bread and butter.

INGREDIENTS

1 big butternut squash, halved longways and seeds scooped out

olive oil for drizzling

scant tbsp of butter

1 tsp of olive oil

salt and pepper

1 onion, sliced

3 cloves of garlic, finely sliced

1 tsp of smoked paprika

1 tsp of honey

pinch of nutmeg (optional)

lots of freshly ground black pepper

1 litre of vegetable stock

possibly more salt and more honey

THE PLAN

Start off by setting the oven to preheating at 200C and as that’s happening, line a baking tray with baking parchment.

Next, split the squash from top to tail and trim off the ends. Drizzle the cut side with olive oil and season generously with salt and pepper. Lay onto the baking tray cut-side down and bake in the oven for 40 to 45 minutes, depending on the size of the squash.

As the oven’s doing its thang, add the sliced onion to a saucepan with the tablespoon of butter and the teaspoon of olive oil and fry up until soft – you don’t want too much colour.

Add the garlic and stir fry for another few minutes, until the scent of garlic makes you swoon.

Add in the paprika and fry for half a minute and then add the honey, stock, nutmeg (if using) and lots of black pepper. Stir it up and turn off the heat. When the butternut squash has had its time in the oven, remove and let it sit for a while to cool, so that it doesn’t burn the hands off you when handling.

When cool, scoop out all the golden flesh with a big spoon and dump into the saucepan with the onion-y mixture. Bring to a simmer and let it bubble away for five minutes so that the flavours get to know one another.

Remove from the heat and blitz with a hand-blender until nice and smooth. After that, check the seasoning and it’s done (it may need
an extra pinch of salt and perhaps another touch of honey).

Serve and devour!