Jamie & Riverford's Spicy Roasted Squash Soup

After discovering the joys of Riverford's Roasted Carrot Soup earlier in the week, I thought I'd try the Riverford roasting trick on another vegetable from their vegbox - a butternut squash.

There were recipes on Riverford's website for roasted butternut squash soup but I thought I'd follow  Jamie Oliver's Spicy Roasted Squash recipe from back in the days of The Naked Chef, and then puree the squash with stock like Riverford's carrot soup.

Again, roasting weaved it's magic.  The butternut squash was sweet and hearty, and not at all floury as it can be when not cooked thoroughly.  And the spices gave a nice warming crunch to the soup.

Serves 2

Half a medium butternut squash (about 500g)
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 tsp dried oregano
1/4tsp fennel seeds
Large pinch of chilli flakes
Large pinch of salt
Large pinch ground black pepper
1 clove of garlic
1-1.2l boiled water
1 organic low salt stock cube

Pre-heat oven to 200C.

Cut the butternut squash in half from top to bottom.  Scrape the seeds out with a spoon and save for planting or roasting.  Peel with a potato peeler or sharp knife.  I tried leaving the skin on but it was too tough to eat, and quite fiddly to remove when hot.  Chop the peeled  butternut squash into large chunks and place in the roasting tray.

Pour over the oil and all the other ingredients.  Grate or crush over the garlic.  Turn everything over in your hands to ensure the squash is thoroughly coated with all the flavourings.  Roast for 30 minutes, turning everything over with a fish slice as much as you can half way through.

Once cooked, place everything into a liquidiser.  Pour some of the boiling water into the roasting tray, scrape off all the caramelised squash and spices, and pour carefully into the liquidiser.  Add the rest of the water and the stock cube and blitz.  Check for seasoning and add more water if you like a looser texture.