Squash And Lentils
This squash and lentil soup recipe is by Penny’s Recipes reader, Rosie. And as you will seem it shows that a soup can be made up of what you happen to have in your cupboards. Be creative! Try things out with flavours you love – and look what you might come up with!
Rosie has called it Orange soup – which represents the colour rather than the ingredients! She has been making use of the availability of Crown Prince squash – but as with all such recipes – a butternut squash will do just as well.
This recipe just goes to show that necessity really is the mother of invention. Follow this recipe – or look in your cupboards to see what delicious soup you can create!
Rosie used red lentils, which would be better than other lentils (green or brown) as they cook quickly – and of course add to the overall orange appearance of the soup! Use whatever herbs and spices you like. This recipe uses thyme but sage is good with squash – or try some rosemary. If you only have mixed herbs in the cupboard – then add a spoonful of that.
A Little chilli powder might be nice, or even some ginger. Go steady on the garlic if it’s not your thing – but isn’t it supposed to help keep away the cold germs?? Or am I getting confused with vampires?
This kind of soup is just what you need on a cold winter’s day. Plenty of warmth and vitamins and substantial enough to fill your tummy.
This is Rosie’s Recipe:–
This weeks Orange Soup recipe (as thrown together by me to use squash up. Impressed a guest with the leftovers the next day.)
Serves 4 hungry people
Rosie’s Squash and Lentil Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon sunflower or olive oil
- 3 or 4 small onions (or 1-2 large)
- several cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
- plenty ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 cup red lentils
- 1/2 cup long grain or basmati rice (white)
- 1/2 roasted squash (crown prince or butternut)
- 700ml vegetable stock
- handful spinach leaves
Cooking Directions
- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C
- Cut your squash in half (or maybe quarter it if it’s a crown prince)
- Place in a roasting dish and drizzle with oil
- Bake for 30-45 minutes or until soft
- Scoop out the flesh. (You can leave the seeds in too and dispose of after roasting)
- Peel and slice onions
- Heat the oil in a large saucepan
- Fry the onions until soft,
- Add pepper, thyme and crushed garlic, stir frequently for a minute or so (I hate burnt garlic)
- Add the lentils, rice and vegetable stock.
- Simmer until rice and lentils are soft.
- Mash up squash roughly with a fork.
- You may need to add some more water at this point to loosen it as it could be quite thick.
- Also at this point the soup was very orange so I added some baby spinach leaves to give a few green highlights – just let them sit on the top whilst the squash warms up and they wilt then stir them in.
- I flavoured it with juice of half a lemon, some chopped fresh majoram (added with the spinach) and a little salt.
Roast your Squash
This saves peeling your squash.
Make the Soup
Very yummy and filling.
Absolutely delicious! First time I have used squash in soup – I thought it might be too sweet, but this recipe has a good balance of flavours, sooooooooo good, and such a happy colour. I didn’t have spinach, but used a couple of lovage leaves, my favourite herb. The rice gave the soup a nice texture. This is now on my regulars list!