IP Pumpkin soup

My colleague gave me a quarter of a kent pumpkin from her mom's veg patch and I put it to good use. With the cool weather of autumn starting, it was a great time to detox with a good veg soup! The magic ingredient is galangal!

Ingredients

¼ pumpkin, skinned

4 medium carrots, sliced

2 medium potatoes, cubed

1 can butter beans, drained

¼ C barley

1 packet store bought chicken soup (or use veg soup to keep it vegetarian)

Water

2 slices of galangal

2 slices of ginger

4 cloves garlic

2 spring onions, sliced

2 tsp white pepper

200ml double cream

chives, chopped (for garnish)

Method

1. Prepare the vegetables. 

2. Toast the white peppercorns and then crush with pestle and mortar.

3. Saute the garlic, ginger, galangal, and spring onions. Add the chopped veg and briefly saute.

4. Pour in the stock, add the crushed white peppercorns (i use a disposable tea bag).

5. Set on soup for 20 minutes. Naturally depressurise.

6. Using the Saute function, pour on the cream and bring back to the boil. Reduce if required.

7. Run through either with an immersion blender or I just used a potato masher to leave it more rustic.

8. Garnish with chopped chives and serve immediate.