Roast Pumpkin and Sage Soup with Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

For the soup:

Cut the pumpkin into quarters and scrape out the seeds.

Chop the pumpkin into chunks (leaving the skin on for now) then place the quartered pumpkin onto a roasting tray and drizzle with olive oil.

Roast at 180 degrees centigrade for c 30 minutes then remove from the oven and leave to cool. (Note: you can toast the seeds at the same time – see below).

Whilst the pumpkin is cooking, slice the onion and then peel and crush two cloves of  garlic.

Scrape the roasted pumpkin flesh  from its skin and add to a large pan, together with the stock, onion, garlic and a small handful of fresh sage leaves.

Bring the ingredients to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 20-30 minutes until the pumpkin flesh is soft.

Place the contents of the pan into a blender and blend until smooth. Return the soup to a pan, season with salt and pepper to taste, and heat through. Serve and dress with a fresh sage leaf and toasted pumpkin seeds.

For the toasted seeds:

Rinse the seeds and remove any remaining strands of pumpkin flesh.

Boil a small pan of water (c 2 cups of water) and add the seeds and a pinch of salt. Bring the water to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and drain the seeds  in a colander.

Tip the seeds onto a baking tray, spray with olive oil and add some rock salt. Toss them around to help coat the seeds. Bake at c 180 degrees for between 5 and 20 minutes; checking until they are brown but not burnt.

When cooked, remove from the heat and leave to cool.

The seeds can be sprinkled on the soup, or eaten as a separate snack.

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