Velvet Soup

By naomi

This soup is a mellifluous marriage of squash, chicken stock and fresh bay leaves. It's deceptively simple and the secret lies in making a good chicken stock.

So next time you roast a bird, celebrate it fully by making stock with the bones and skin, toss in a quartered onion, a few cloves of garlic, stick of celery and some peppercorns - then just let it simmer slowly for at least three hours, filling the house with its comforting aroma. When you're done, strain and make this soup - you won't be sorry!

Ingredients

• Vegetable oil to coat the pan
• 1 medium brown-skin onion
• 2 medium carrots (8oz peeled weight)
• Sea salt
• 8 oz harlequin squash (peeled weight)
• 1.25 litres chicken stock (home made is best)
• 2 bay leaves (fresh ones are lovely)

Preparation

Step 1

Coat the bottom of a large saucepan with vegetable oil and heat gently.

Chop the onion roughly and throw into the pan - keep the heat gentle and stir from time to time.

Chop the peeled carrots finely and add to the pan with a pinch of salt. fry gently, stirring from time to time until the onions have started to turn a deep golden colour. This could take up to twenty minutes - but it's worth it.

Peel, de-seed and chop the squash roughly into cubes and put into the pan with the bay leaves. Pour in the stock and bring up to the boil.

Simmer gently with a lid on until the carrots are tender and then take the bay leaves out and liquidise until velvety smooth. You might want to keep back some of the stock - in case the soup is a little too thin - or add a little boiling water if it seems too thick. Taste for seasoning and add some salt or black pepper if you think it needs it. I assume your stock is salt free as I don't put any in mine, but check before you throw a load in!

Pour into bowls or thin it down a little and pack into a flask for tramping through the woods with.