Pumpkin goulash soup

Autumn is an inspiring time for me. I love the warm colours and comforting sweetness of vegetables like winter squash.

With Halloween approaching, the shops are full of pumpkins. The type of pumpkins used for carving jack-o'-lanterns are generally not very tasty, so don't try to use them in cooking. Here's one I carved last year.

Instead, you can buy other multi-coloured varieties of winter squash, such as Blue Hubbard, Acorn, Kabocha, Delicata and Spaghetti squash, each with their own unique texture and flavour. I particularly like the orange ones that look like mini pumpkins (var. Kabocha).

Winter squash, like other richly coloured vegetables, are excellent sources of carotenes – the darker the colour, the higher the concentration. They're also a very good source of vitamins C and B1, folic acid, vitamin B5, potassium and dietary fibre; and a good source of vitamins B3 and B6.

Like other carotene-rich vegetables, winter squash have been shown to have a protective effect against many cancers, including lung cancer. Diets rich in carotenes also appear to protect against type 2 diabetes. Pumpkin seeds have been shown to be helpful in reducing symptoms of benign prostatic hyperplasia.

In this recipe, I combined sweet orange winter squash, with red and yellow bell peppers, tomatoes, potato, onions and smoked paprika to create a colourful, satisfying and antioxidant-rich soup, with a delicately smoky flavour.

Bell peppers are extremely nutrient dense. They are low in calories but high in vitamin C, beta-carotene, vitamin K, thiamine, folic acid and vitamin B6.

Bell peppers are also a very good source of phytochemicals with exceptional antioxidant activity, such as chlorogenic acid, coumeric acid, and zeaxanthin.

Studies in Italy have shown that consumption of bell peppers reduced risk for cataract surgery and also had a protective effect against cataracts.

Like tomatoes, red bell peppers also contain lycopene, which is known to protect against cancer and heart disease. Lycopene has been shown to be particularly protective against prostate cancer.

Bell peppers also contain capsaicin, flavonoids and vitamin C, which have been shown to prevent blood clot formation and reduce risk of heart attacks and stroke.

Ingredients

• 1-2 tsp olive oil or 1 tbsp water
• 1 pinch sea salt
• 2 onions (200g/7oz), peeled and chopped
• ½ winter squash (680g/24oz), peeled and chopped
• 1 red pepper, washed, de-seeded and chopped into small pieces
• 1 yellow pepper, washed, de-seeded and chopped into small pieces
• 1 medium potato, peeled and chopped
• 1 can (400g/14oz) chopped tomatoes
• 2-3 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tbsp sweet white miso, diluted in a little water
• Chopped fresh herbs to garnish

Method

Heat oil or water in a pan, add a pinch of salt and the onions and sweat for 5 minutes until onions are soft and translucent.

Add chopped winter squash, red pepper, yellow pepper, potato, tomatoes and smoked paprika and simmer on a low heat for 20-25 minutes, until vegetables are soft.

Partially blend soup with a hand blender, so the vegetables are reduced to small chunks. Add miso little by little to taste.

Garnish with fresh herbs and serve hot.

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Nutrient information

Courgette (zucchini) and tofu fritters with avocado, cashew and lime dip

“Westley shrugged. "Welcome to the middle of nowhere. I'm more likely to come home to find someone's left a pie on my counter than to find my television's missing. Although—" He winced.

"What?" Jaylen looked ready to fight whatever threat had made its way into Westley's home.

"Last year the zucchini crop was really good and somebody left three bushels in my kitchen."

"Oh." Jaylen deflated. So there was an enemy he wasn't a match for.

"There's still zucchini bread in the freezer," Westley offered. "If you're hungry.” 

- Ryan Loveless, Wolf Hunter

So what on earth can you do with all those courgettes/zucchinis?

Fear not. 

Here's a real crowd-pleasing recipe, with plenty of scope for modification. 

Courgette (zucchini) and tofu fritters with a creamy avocado, cashew and lime dip are tasty and satisfying and ideal for summer picnics, packed lunches, snacks and to serve as a main meal with a green salad. 

Recipes

Avocado, cashew and lime dip

Ingredients

• ½ cup cashews

• 1 small avocado

• Juice of ½ small lime

• Small pinch of salt if required

Method

1. Soak cashew nuts in water for 1-2 hours. While the cashews are soaking, prepare the courgette (zucchini) fritters following the instructions below.

2. When the cashews have finished soaking, drain them. Cut avocado in half, remove the stone, scoop out flesh and blend with cashews, adding lime juice and salt to taste

Courgette (zucchini) and tofu fritters

Ingredients

• 2 medium courgettes (zucchini) 

• 1 small white onion (grated) or 3 spring onions (scallions) (finely chopped)

• 2-3 small new potatoes

• ½ tsp salt

• 60g/3oz firm tofu

• 1 tsp ground cumin

• 1 tsp ground coriander

• 1 tsp ground paprika

• 1 tsp lime zest

• 1-2 tbsp fresh lime juice

• 1 tsp apple juice concentrate

• 1 tbsp ground flax seed mixed with 2 tbsp warm water – this acts as a binding agent instead of using egg. You could also use 1 tbsp chia seeds + 3 tbsp water.

• 2 tbsp fresh coriander, chopped

• 3-4 tbsp chickpea (garbanzo bean) flour (you can use regular wheat flour)

Method

1. Grate courgettes (zucchini) and onion into a bowl (or add chopped spring onions (scallions)

2. Peel potatoes and grate into bowl with courgettes (zucchini) and onion

3. Sprinkle grated vegetables with salt and allow to sit for 30 minutes to draw out the juices. Squeeze out excess liquid with your hands and put mixture in a bowl

4. Grate tofu into the bowl with the grated courgettes (zucchini), potatoes and onion

5. Add ground cumin, ground coriander and ground paprika, lime zest, lime juice, apple juice concentrate and fresh coriander

6. Carefully fold in ground flax seed and water mixture and the flour

7. Shape into small flat rounds and gently pan-fry in a good quality oil that won’t burn. I used rice bran oil; olive oil would be fine.

8. Finish making the avocado dip (see above)

Garnish with fresh herbs and serve with the avocado, cashew and lime dip and a green salad 

Nutritional information

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