Category: Recipes

Hearty Pumpkin Soup

Here’s a simple recipe to use up some of your pumpkin glut. This will make enough for four large portions.

Ingredients:
– 900g of roughly chopped and peeled pumpkin
– one large red onion
– one parsnip
– one carrot
– one large potato
– three cloves of garlic
– 150ml of double cream
– Two vegetable or chicken stock cubes
– 1tsp cinnamon
– 1tsp nutmeg
– 1tsp paprika
– salt and pepper to taste

Place the chopped carrot, onion, garlic, parsnip and potato in a pan with some water to cover, let the vegetables soften for around 10-15 minutes. Add the pumpkin and let it simmer for another 5-10 minutes and remove from the heat. Drain the water from the pan and then add the stock mixture. For extra flavour, we added one vegetable stock cube and one chicken stock cube. Allow this to simmer for around 20-30 minutes.

Put the softened vegetables and stock mix into a blender. Blend until smooth. Follow up with the double cream and blend until you are satisfied with the consistency. Put the soup back in the pan and gently heat.

If you do not have a blender, you can use a masher. Remove the pan from the heat and mash the mixture until you are satisfied. Stir in the double cream and place back on the hob to warm through.

If you want, you can roast the pumpkin seeds for an extra crunch. Rinse the seeds in cold water and then place the seeds on a clean tea towel to take off the excess moisture. Put them in a bowl with the seasoning of your choice; we used 1tsp of cinnamon and 1tsp of paprika. Add 1tsp of olive oil and mix the seasoning and pumpkin seeds until they are coated. Put them on a baking tray at 180°c, checking every 5 minutes until they are crispy. Ours took around 15-20 minutes.

And enjoy!

I love this recipe with a chunky slice of homemade bread.

Strawberry & Raspberry Mix Jam Recipe

Here is a simple recipe for a small batch of mixed jam. This should make two jars or about 700g-750g of jam.

Ingredients:
– 200g of strawberries
– 200g of raspberries
– 200g of granulated sugar
– 180g of pectin sugar
– 50ml of lemon juice

Equipment:
– Two metal pans, one for the jam and one for sterilising the jars
– Two jars
– A wooden spoon
– A slotted spoon
– Tongs
– A saucer (to test your setting point)
– A wooden cutting board
– Cellophane
– Wax discs

Firstly, put your saucer in the fridge, you will need this later. Wash the berries thoroughly and trim off any stems. Cut the strawberries in half, the raspberries can be left whole.

Place the strawberries in the pan with the granulated sugar, once the strawberries begin to break down add in the pectin sugar and raspberries. You can mash the strawberries if you wish to speed up the process and have a smoother jam. Raspberries also break down a lot quicker, thus needing less time in the pan. Remember to stir your mixture as it breaks down. Once the sugars have dissolved, add in the lemon juice and raise the temperature of your stove to eventually bring to a boiling point. Skim off any scum with the slotted spoon that may be on the surface. It is okay if you cannot remove it all, a little won’t hurt. Boil for around 8-10 minutes.

Take the saucer out of the fridge and dab about a teaspoons worth of jam onto it. Place it back into the fridge and leave for a minute or two. If it crinkles on the saucer when it is touched, it has reached setting point. If not, place your mixture back on the boil for another 2-3 minutes. Add a little more pectin sugar if you feel that your mixture needs it.

Once you have reached setting point, take the mixture off the boil and allow to rest. You can now begin to sterilise your jars. You will need to bring your jars to the boil, making sure they are fully submersed in water. Allow them to boil for a few minutes. Turn off the heat and use the tongs to pick the jars out of the pan and drain the water, place them on side. It would be best to place them on a wooden board to protect your counter from the heat. Do not let the jars cool too much when potting your jam, it is best done when the jars have just come off the boil but do be careful not to burn yourself. This limits the amount of time the jars can come into contact with bacteria.

Pour in your mixture and then place a wax disc on top of it, then cover the top of the jar with cellophane. Screw the lid on and label your jars.

There you have it! I hope you enjoy this recipe.