Weight Watchers Recipe of the Week: A Warming Winter Squash Soup

Eating healthy in the winter months can be a challenge. While the rain is bucketing down outside it’s so tempting to opt for stodgy, carb and fat laden goods. Resist the temptation by mastering some simple, tasty and hearty dishes that you can prep in advance and enjoy after a hard day’s work. This week, try your hand at a warming winter soup using seasonal squash.     ProPoints value of 11 per recipe 15 minutes to prepare, 1 hour 30 minutes to cook Serves 4 V   Ingredients  1 whole round acorn or onion squash weighing about 1.2 kg (2 lb 12 oz) or 4 baby ones Calorie controlled cooking spray 2 onions, chopped roughly 4 garlic cloves 3 celery sticks, chopped 2 leeks, trimmed and chopped roughly 2 carrots, peeled and chopped roughly 1.5 litres (2 ¾ pints) of vegetable stock made with 3 cubes   To serve: 4 tbsp pumpkin seeds 4 tbsp low fat natural yogurt

1. Preheat the oven to gas mark 6/ 200?C/ fan oven 180?C. Trim the base from the squash so it will stand up on a baking tray. Cut off the top to form a lid, scoop out the seeds with a spoon (making sure you don’t remove too much of the flesh) and discard. Mist the inside with cooking spray and season. Replace the lid and wrap the squash in foil. Put in the oven and bake for 55-60 minutes until the flesh is tender when pierced with the tip of a sharp knife. If you’re using baby ones, check them after 40 minutes. Allow to cool a little.
2. Mist a large saucepan with the cooking spray and sauté the onions and garlic for 2-3 minutes. Add the celery, leek and carrot and cook for a further 2-3 minutes until starting to soften. Add the stock and some seasoning, cover and bring to the boil. Simmer for 15-20 minutes.
3. Scoop out the cooked flesh from the squash and retain the shell. Add the flesh to the soup and cook for a further 10-15 minutes. Remove from the heat and puree with a stick blender or in a food processor until smooth.
4. Toast the pumpkin seeds by dry frying them in a non stick pan for a few minutes, stirring regularly until golden brown. Remove from the pan and allow to cool. Serve the soup in the individual squash shells, topped with the yogurt and seeds. If you have one large squah, you can use it as a tureen and serve the soup in bowls.

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