For the first ever time yesterday, I carved a pumpkin!

So, it’s not a masterpiece, but I was still pretty chuffed with my beginner effort!

Bella, my three year old, absolutely loved it too, so I’m going to make carving a pumpkin a yearly tradition and let the children help me as they grow older.

Not wanting to waste the insides I scooped out, I decided to make some pumpkin soup.  Bella excitedly chanted ‘pumpkin pie, pumpkin pie’ as this is a story from Peppa Pig!  Not being a pie maker, but instead a pretty awesome soup maker, I convinced her otherwise!

Pumpkin soup will also be a yearly tradition for us at Halloween!  It's better than wasting the pumpkin flesh.

We supped away at this delicious soup whilst enjoying the flickering glow of our freshly carved pumpkin head.  It was quite a magical halloweeny themed dinner (or pumpkin party as Bella called it) and I look forward to enjoying this moment each and every year from now on!

If you want to make the delicious spicy pumpkin soup I made, then read on.  It's a really quick and easy way to make a delicious warming, hearty soup with spice.

Quick + easy spicy pumpkin soup recipe - suitable for vegans

This soup recipe is so easy to make.  You could faff around with roasting the pumpkin and all that, but I like to keep cooking as straightforward as possible and as this was going to make a puree soup, it's a lot easier to just boil all the veg and then puree once they are soft enough.  That's what makes this pumpkin soup recipe so quick and easy.

Ingredients

• As much of the flesh and pulp as you can scoop out of an uncooked smallish pumpkin!
• 2 parsnips
• 2 carrots
• ½ white onion
• 1 sweet potato
• A spoonful of stock powder
• A sprinkle of cinnamon
• A small piece of ginger (approx. 1x1cm)
• A sprinkle of chillis if you dare! (Add these to the bowls at the end if you have little people to feed)

Method

1. Peel and chunkily chop all the veg and add to a pan. 
2. Cover with water – enough so the veg are just covered. 
3. Add the ginger, cinnamon, stock and mix in until the stock is dissolved. 
4. Bring to the boil. 
5. Turn heat down, add lid and simmer for around one hour until everything is super mushy and smells delicious. 
6. Carefully pour into a heat resistant blender jug and blend until smooth. (Add more hot water if you want to reduce the thickness)
7. Best served with chunky slices of warm homemade wholemeal bread (I make ours with four ingredients, simply water, wholemeal bread flour, butter and yeast and it’s super tasty with no sugar or nasties)
8. Enjoy!