Butternut Squash and Lentil Soup with Herby Soda Bread {Clever Oven Useage}
This butternut squash and lentil soup It’s easy to make, inexpensive, versatile and perfect for freezing. Serve it with this yummy homemade herby soda bread, which can be baked in the oven at the same time as the butternut squash, and your soup becomes a ‘proper’ meal.
Prep butternut squash effortlessly by baking it in the oven wrapped in foil at the same time you bake your soda bread. It cuts out so much hard work. You could even roast the seeds from your butternut squash and use them to garnish your soup.
Catch me on The Paul Ross Breakfast Show on BBC Radio Berkshire, 16th November 2013 where this recipe is part of the ‘Supper for £6’ feature.
Squash and Lentil Soup with Herby Soda Bread
Serves: 4
Time: 30 mins total hands on time + 1 hour 15 total cooking time
Cost: 68p per serving
Calories: 544 per serving
Ingredients:
For the herby soda bread:
450ml semi-skimmed milk
Juice 1 lemon (or 3 tablespoon lemon juice from a bottle)
500g plain flour
3 teaspoons bicarbonate of soda
2 teaspoons table salt
½ teaspoon of each: dried rosemary and dried thyme
For the squash and lentil soup:
1 medium butternut squash (just under 1kg) wrapped snugly in tin foil
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 large onion, peeled and diced
1 large carrot, peeled and grated
4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 red chilli, de-seeded and finely chopped (optional)
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
150g red lentils, washed well until water runs clear
1 litre hot vegetable stock
Salt and pepper to taste
Pumpkin or squash seeds to serve (optional)
Method:
To make the soda bread:
Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 6 / 200 C. Line a baking sheet with baking paper. Sprinkle the baking paper liberally with flour.
Mix the milk and lemon juice together and put to one side to sour and thicken. In a large bowl, mix together the flour, bicarbonate of soda, salt and dried herbs.
Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in the milk and lemon juice mixture. Mix everything together using a blunt knife until just combined. If it's a little too wet, add some flour but not so much it becomes dry.
Form into a round flat-ish shape in your hands and place on the lined baking sheet. Give it a good dusting of flour and cut a deep cross into the dough.
Bake for around 45 minutes along with the foil wrapped squash if you like (see below) until golden brown and cooked through. It should make a hollow sound when tapped. Allow to cool before slicing.
To make the squash and lentil soup:
Place the squash tightly wrapped in foil in a preheated oven at gas mark 6 / 200 C for 45 minutes. Remove from the oven, leave to cool and unwrap. Slice in half lengthways, scoop out seeds with a spoon and set to one side. Scoop out the soft cooked butternut squash flesh and set to one side. You can bake the squash in the oven at the same time as your soda bread!
Heat the oil in the pan and add the onion, carrot, garlic and chilli if using. Stir fry for around 5 minutes until soft, then add the paprika and stir fry for another minute.
Add the lentils, stock, and the butternut squash flesh from step 1. Stir, season to taste, bring to the boil and simmer for around 20 minutes until the lentils are soft.
Blend the soup (using a hand blender or by transferring it to a food processor) until smooth and serve topped with pumpkin seeds if you like.
