A HARVEST FEAST

Celebrate the arrival of autumn’s bounty with cookery director Meike Beck’s hearty seasonal menu

A seasonal menu to welcome in autumn days

Squash, Sage and Chestnut Soup

All hail the versatile butternut squash, the most comforting of autumn veg. Soups make a great starter, as they look elegant and can be made ahead. If you want to make this vegan, simply use a dairy-free cheese alternative. Hands-on time 20min.

Cooking time about 45min. Serves 8

FOR THE SOUP  1tbsp olive oil

 2 onions, roughly chopped  2 garlic cloves, crushed  800g skin-on butternut squash, deseeded (see GH Tip) and cut into 2.5cm pieces

 2 medium carrots, peeled and roughly chopped

 180g pouch cooked chestnuts, we used Merchant Gourmet  1.5 litre vegetable stock

 2 sage sprigs TO GARNISH

 2tsp olive oil

 Small handful small sage leaves  100g goat’s cheese log

1 For the soup, heat the oil in a large pan over low heat and cook the onions for 5min, until softened. Stir in the garlic, butternut squash, carrots and all but about 8 of the chestnuts. Cook for 5min. Pour in the stock and add the sage sprigs and plenty of seasoning.

2 Bring up to the boil and simmer for 20-25min, until the squash is completely tender. Working in batches, whizz until smooth. Check the seasoning and pour into a clean pan.

3 To garnish, heat 1tsp oil in a small frying pan over medium heat. Meanwhile, chop the reserved 8 chestnuts. Fry chestnuts for a few min, until golden and crisp. Set aside on a plate. Add remaining oil and fry small sage leaves, until golden and crisp. Lift on to kitchen paper to drain.

4 To serve, reheat the soup and ladle into 8 soup bowls. Garnish with the fried chestnuts and sage leaves. Crumble over the goat’s cheese and sprinkle over some freshly ground black pepper.

PER SERVING 190cals, 6g protein, 7g fat (3g saturates), 23g carbs (13g total sugars), 6g fibre

GET AHEAD Make soup up to 2 days ahead; cool, cover and chill. Garnishes can be made up to 3hr ahead. Store at room temperature. To serve, reheat soup in a pan until piping hot, check seasoning and complete recipe.