Bonfire butternut soup!

Bonfire night is ultimately my favourite time of the year!

Dark nights spent cosy-ing up with hot chocolate and watching the fireworks sparkle, brings magic to the cold winter drawing in.

And what better way to celebrate this fun weekend with some traditional, winter-warming food with a bonfire-night themed blog for the weekend!?

My gorgeous assistant Steve and I have been busy in the kitchen – preparing for you a wealth of gluten free goodies which can be enjoyed over this weekend.

Plus they’re great recipes that will see you through the winter with a smile!

So first on the menu – a hearty soup with a warm, orangey colour, guaranteed to warm you through – either from a flask whilst out watching the firework displays, or from the comfort of your home whilst snuggled infront of the fire!

Bonfire butternut soup

1 Large butternut squash

2 medium sized potatoes

1/2 a leek

1 small red onion

Fresh corriander

Salt and pepper

450ml chicken stock (or vegetable if you’re vegetarian!)

knob of butter (or olive oil if you’re going low-fat!)

1. Dice the onion and leek finely and add to a saucepan with the butter or oil
2. Fry the onions and leeks in the melter butter or oil for a couple of minutes until soft.
3. Meanwhile, top and tail the butternut squash, peel it, slice in half long ways and scoop out the seeds with a spoon.

4. 

   Dice into small chunks

5. Peel the potatoes and dice into similar sized chunks to the squash.
6. Add the potatoes and squash to the softened onions and leeks in the saucepan. Stir and cover with a lid
7. Keep on a low heat and stir occassionally for ten minutes, when the potato and squash should start to soften slightly
8. After ten minutes, add the stock gradually to the mixture. You want this to just cover the level of the vegetables
9. Add some chopped fresh corriander and a generous helping of salt and pepper to taste
10. Simmer on a low heat, with the lid on, for 15 minutes -stirring occassionally.
11. If necessary, you can add more stock if the level starts to go down
12. Allow to cool slightly (incase of any nasty spatters!) then liquidise with a hand blender to create a thick, smooth soup.
13. Serve with a sprig of corriander and salt and pepper to taste – you could even stir in some cream for an extra bit of luxury!

What’s you favourite bonfire night meal? Comment below to have your say, and keep checking back for more Bonfire Night specials this weekend!!