Crown prince is my favourite squash. It has an intriguing pale, teal green coloured skin and a particularly vibrant orange flesh. Its flavour is richer than our faithful butternut and less sweet. This is a very silky soup and perfectly warming for an autumn eve.

Waste not: Peel the squash with a peeler so that you only waste what you have too. Keep the seeds and dry them out in the oven with salt and spices to eat as a snack.

Ingredients - serves 4 or 20

800ml clear veg stock
1 onion, sliced
1 leek, sliced
2 cloves garlic
400g crown prince squash peeled and diced into large pieces
Chili oil or ground ginger
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

1) Gently sauté the onion, leek, and garlic for 15 minutes or until translucent but not coloured.
2) Add the squash and stock and simmer for 25 minutes until soft.
3) While hot, blend until smooth. Adjust seasoning to taste.
4) To serve, sprinkle drops of the red chilli oil over the soup. If you don’t have chilli oil add a little fresh chilli or ginger at the beginning.

Notes: You can make this soup with any pumpkin or squash or even a combination.