Tag: Dynia

Pumpkin Soup – 1

  • I have never cooked with pumpkins before – dynia in Polish.
  • This will be my first try with the first of two soups.
  • This one is the easiest.
  • Having said that, peeling the pumpkin can be difficult.

INGREDIENTS

  • 500g of pumpkin flesh (peeled and seeds removed).
  • 2 red peppers
  • 2 large onions
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • 1 tablespoon of tomato purée 
  • 1 teaspoon of hot paprika powder
  • ¼ teaspoon of  salt.
  • 1.5 litres of vegetable stock
  • Salt & pepper to taste
  • *
  • Small handful of flat leaved parsley – chopped – to serve

METHOD

  • Remove all the peel and the seed from the pumpkin.
  • Chop the flesh into small chunks.
  • De-seed the peppers and cut the flesh into small pieces.
  • Chop the onion into small pieces.
  • Place all these chopped vegetables into a large saucepan and add the vegetable stock.
  • Add the tomato purée, lemon juice, salt and paprika powder.
  • Bring to the boil and then add a lid and allow to simmer.
  • Cook until the vegetables are soft.
  • Take the pan off the heat.
  • Use a stick blender to purée the soup.
  • Season to taste.
  • *
  • Serve with a little chopped flat leaved parsley.

Royal Standard – Blossom Time soup plate

Pumpkin Soup

  • All the shops here in England are filled with pumpkins for Halloween, which is celebrated by many.
  • In Poland it is the Christian feasts of All Saints & All Souls on November 1st & 2nd that are celebrated with many people trying to get home to their relatives graves to clean them up and put grave candles on them.
  • As there are all these pumpkins – dynia -in Polish- I thought I would try out a pumpkin soup.
  • This is a very tasty yet simple soup.
  • I have added a couple of options.

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 pumpkin – small to medium – around 500g of flesh.
  • 1 large onion
  • Butter for frying the onion
  • 1½ litres of vegetable or chicken stock
  • ¼ teaspoon of ground paprika
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • *
  • OPTION 1 – ½ a red pepper
  • OPTION 2 – 1 red pepper
  • OPTION 3 – roasted pumpkin seeds (not tested)

METHOD

  • Peel the skin off the pumpkin.
  • Cut the pumpkin into pieces – leaving the core.
  • Cut the flesh into small chunks.
  • Chop the onion into small pieces.
  • Fry the onion until it is golden – even turning slightly brown.
  • Add the pumpkin and the fried onion to the stock and heat to boiling.
  • Turn down to simmer.
  • Simmer until the pumpkin flesh is soft.
  • Add the paprika.
  • Use a stick blender to purée the soup.
  • Bring back to boiling and serve straight away.
  • *
  • OPTION 1
  • Chop up ½ a red pepper and blanch and simmer for a few minutes.
  • Add some to each serving of soup.
  • *
  • OPTION 2
  • Chop up  1 pepper and add it after you have puréed the soup.
  • Simmer for around 10 minutes.
  • *
  • OPTION 3 – NOT TESTED
  • Add some roasted pumpkin seeds to each serving.
  • You can clean up and roast the pumpkin seeds from your own pumpkin.
  • *
  • Royal Doulton Carnation rimmed soup plate 
  • Royal Doulton Burgundy rimmed soup plate 
  • Johnson Snowhite bowl.

Butternut Squash Soup

  • I was looking for a recipe for pumpkin – dynia in Polish – soup and found one in what I call my Polish Classic “bible”.
  • I will try this out in the autumn but as there are lots of butternut squashes – dynia piżmowa  or dynia orzechowa– in Polish – in the shops at the moment I decided to try this instead.
  • I have never really cooked with butternut squash before and my main piece of advice is to be very careful peeling it.
  • I found it is best to slice off the top and bottom with a sharp knife or cleaver.
  • I found it easier to then cut it into two horizontally  and have the cut surface on a board.
  • Then use a vegetable peeler to remove the skin.
  • The soup has a mild sweet taste.

Ingredients

  • 1 butternut squash
  • 2 onions
  • 2 red or orange peppers
  • 1 ½ litres of vegetable stock
  • Around 3 tablespoons of butter
  • 125ml soured cream
  • Salt & pepper & sugar to taste.
  • *
  • Extra teaspoons of soured cream to serve

Method

  • Peel the butternut squash,
  • Chop the squash into chunks.
  • Chop the onions into small pieces.
  • Chop up the peppers and remove the seeds.
  • Gently fry the onions in the butter till golden,
  • Add the peppers and fry for a minute or two.
  • Add the vegetable stock and simmer for around 10 minutes.
  • Add the butternut squash and simmer for another 10 minutes or so.
  • Use a stick blender to purée the soup.
  • Season to taste.
  • Add the soured cream and stir before serving.
  • *
  • Add an extra teaspoon of soured cream to each serving if you want,

Meakin – Spanish Garden soup dish.