Roasted Butternut and Apple Soup with Bacon Croutons

Ingredients

Cooks in:1 hour (mostly unattended)        Serves:4-6

For Roasting

• 750g butternut squash, peeled and cut into 2cm x 2cm cubes (save the pips to pan fry as extra croutons)
• 1 Tbsp Willow Creek Olive oil
• 1/2 tsp each of cinnamon, rosemary and nutmeg
• 1 tsp dried sage

For Frying

• 2 medium red onions, roughly chopped
• 2-3 apples, peeled, cored and roughly chopped
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 1 Tbsp Willow Creek Olive oil
• 1/2 tsp each of cinnamon, rosemary and nutmeg
• 1 tsp dried sage
• 3 cups good quality chicken or vegetable stock
• 200g streaky bacon
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

What to do

1. Pre-heat your oven to 180C. Rub the butternut cubes with olive oil and sprinkle over the herbs and spices. Roast for 30-40 minutes or until the butternut is golden and starting to caramelise.

2. Meanwhile, over medium heat, add the butter and olive oil to a large pot. As it starts to bubble, add the onion until softened, then the apple and cook gently for 10 minutes or until the onions have softened completely. Add the herbs and spices.

3. Fry the bacon until golden and crispy over a medium heat, turning from time to time, then set aside to drain on kitchen paper until serving. Toss the saved butternut pips into the remaining bacon fat and fry until crispy.

4. Add the cooked butternut to the pot (along with the remaining ingredients, and return it to the heat). Simmer gently for 15 minutes, remove from the heat and blend until smooth (or thicker consistency if desired). Season to taste and serve in warmed bowls with a scattering of bacon and butternut seed ‘croutons’.

Photo from 'Sarah Graham's Food Safari Season 2' by Ricardo de Leça.

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