Recipe: Low Calorie Pumpkin & Pesto Soup

So, I apologise for the glut of pumpkin recipes. They’re cheap as chips in the post-Halloween days and make a nice alternative to butternut squash. That, and I ended up with seven pumpkins this year (you can read why here), which is probably mostly to blame in all honesty.

I know I’ve only just shared the Pumpkin & Crispy Chorizo Soup recipe with you but bear with me;

1. This tastes COMPLETELY different
2. This soup is vegan friendly, dairy free and gluten free
3. Soup is perfect for this time of year

Once again this recipe is courtesy of ‘A Soup For Every Day’ by New Covent Garden Soups. I’ve tweaked it slightly to give it a touch more flavour and make it dairy free but the gist is still the same. The beauty of this soup is it’s filling yet still impressively low calorie; the entire recipe clocks in at just under 600 calories or 150kcal per serving. That’s including the pesto/oil on top!

Anyway, enough rambling. Introducing Pumpkin & Pesto Soup.

Makes 4 portions

You will need:

• 2tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium onion (chopped)
• 1 clove garlic (chopped)
• 600g pumpkin flesh – about half an average pumpkin
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp chopped & deseeded chilli
• 1 bay leaf
• 750ml vegetable stock
• 1tsp pesto

Recipe:

1. Heat 1tbsp oil in a large saucepan.  Add the onion and garlic and cook until soft
2. Add the pumpkin flesh (cubed or scraped out depending on your preference), cinnamon, cumin, chilli and bay leaf.  Cook for five minutes, stirring well to ensure no sticking
3. Add the vegetable stock, cover the pan and allow to simmer for 20 minutes
4. Remove the bay leaf and blend until smooth
5. Season to taste
6. Mix the pesto with the remaining olive oil and drizzle over the top to serve