in my kitchen

I seem to have food on my mind right now.  Spending quite a lot of time in , and thinking a lot about being in my kitchen.   And this for several reasons : would you like to know why?

Number one is that I am on a diet UGH!   this is painful to stick to and painful to admit to in public, but I have to face up to the truth.  2019 saw me spending too much time sitting at a desk and not enough time moving around!  So I am buckling down to my preferred methods which is basically cutting back on carbs and sugar, and walking more and sometimes  skipping dinner.    I know it will work, but I can’t say that I love the process.

Cooking and eating is about so much more than just eating.  It is about sharing, about preparing together, about sitting down to talk, about slowing down and savouring not only what is in your plate but also the moment in hand.   I’m lucky to have a French husband who loves to cook and loves to eat well, and our meals together are always prepared from scratch, no matter how simple they may be.

In our February box we are also celebrating the love of food and cooking, with an edition that we have named ‘Dans ma Cuisine’, or in my kitchen.  I loved curating this collection, and including things that I use at home and that I think our box clients will love too. I’ve included a piece from iconic brand Emile Henry, as well as some other really beautiful items for you to use daily.   If you think you’d like this box, there are just a few left and it will ship mid February.  Just click here to choose between a one-off purchase or an automatic subscription.

So in honour of this cooking theme, I’m sharing with you a recipe that I have shared before and which so many people have written to say they enjoy.  This pumpkin soup is about the easiest thing ever to make, and if you serve it in individual pumpkins as I do here, then it is as beautiful as it is delicious.

To create these little servers I simply scooped out and dried the inside of a small pumpkin .    If you don’t like the idea of your soup sitting directly inside the raw pumpkin, then it is quite easy to insert a small glass pot, that is then  hidden inside the fruit.

This is my idea of a simple and delicious autumn lunch: home-made pumpkin soup; bread and cheese and a few walnuts.

To make this soup I use a deep roasting pan, and set the oven to fairly hot.   Cut a couple of small pumpkins, or a large slice of big pumpkin, into big cubes.   No need to remove the skin, this will soften during cooking.   Add a diced onion, a few tomatoes, a branch or two of celery and a couple of cloves of garlic.   Sprinkle with a little salt and ground pepper and drizzle with olive oil.

Bake in the oven for an hour or so until the vegetables are all soft and beginning to caramelise.   Remove the vegetables and put one third into a blender.   Blend until smooth adding water, milk and some stock if you wish.    The thickness is up to you, and you’ll have time to add more liquid later if required.

Transfer the blended vegetables to a saucepan and repeat the blending with the remaining vegetables until you have a lovely saucepan of thick soup.   Heat gently and adjust the thickness and seasoning to taste.

Of course you can simply serve this soup in regular bowls or mugs, but you have to admit that these servers are way cuter!   Bon appetit.

To purchase the February edition of My Stylish French Box, click HERE

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