Winter’s Soup

Why did I name this winter’s soup? It’s easy… there are three sesonal winter ingredients in it: kale, butternut squash and rutabaga (swede or yellow turnip). Do you know this sweet root vegetable? The name comes from the old Swedish word Rotabagge, meaning simply “root bag”. Rutabaga contains significant amounts of vitamin C: 100 g contains 25 mg, which is 42% of the daily recommended dose.

When it’s time to wrap up warm, it’s also time to dig out the pots and the soup recipes. I love soup at any time of year but particularly in autumn and winter and this one rich in taste and in texture, making sure you get lots of nutrients in the cold, dark months.

Winter’s Soup

Ingredients

– half of a smaller butternut squas, peeled, deseeded and cubed
– 1 medium rutabaga, peeled and cubed
– 1 small bunch of kale, washed and chopped
– 1 onion, peeled and diced
– 3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
– 1/2 cup black beluga lentils
– 1 smaller ripe avocado, diced
– 1/2 bunch of parsley, chopped
– 1 teaspoon cumin
– salt, pepper
– olive oil
– water

Method

Preheat oven to 180C (350F).  In a bowl toss butternut squash and rutabaga  with olive oil, salt and pepper and spread evenly onto a sheet pan. Roast the vegetables for 45 minutes, or until browned and tender, stirring once halfway through cooking. Leave it cool and set aside. 

In a pan saute the onions and garlic over medium high heat until soft and starting to turn brown. Add roasted vegetables, lentils, cumin, salt and pepper and 1-1,5 liters water. Bring up to a simmer. When the lentils are tender, fill pot to the top with kale and cover for at least 10 minutes so that the kale will wilt and steam. Check kale for tenderness after 10 minutes.  Once ready, add chopped parsley. Adjust final seasoning with salt and pepper.  Ladle and serve into individual bowls, and top with freshly diced avocado.