Roasted Squash & Nigella Seed Soup

Just like cumin, nigella seeds, a.k.a. black cumin, pair harmoniously with roasted root vegetables—try on carrots with your next Sunday roast. While, like many, I’m partial to sage with butternut squash, nigella seeds are an interesting alternative in most recipes. They both add a herbaceous quality, adding a savoury note to an otherwise sweet vegetable.

I tend to use chicken stock, but use vegetable stock to keep this recipe vegetarian. Butter adds a subtle flavour and texture to this recipe, but it is not essential. Substitute an extra tbsp of olive oil to make this recipe vegan.

Prep 15 mins

Cook 1 hr

Total 1 hr 15 mins

Serves 6

Ingredients

1 medium-sized butternut squash
1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil plus more for drizzling
30g unsalted butter
1 yellow onion
3 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp nigella seeds
pinch of salt
freshly ground black pepper
1L good quality stock

Method

Preheat the oven to 200ºC/400ºF. Half the butternut squash vertically and scrape out the seeds. Drizzle each half of the squash with a light coating of olive oil on the inside and rub the oil into the flesh. Place the squash face down on a roasting tray and bake for 45 minutes until the flesh is tender and the skin has blistered.
Remove the squash from the oven and set it aside to cool for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, place a large soup pot on medium heat and add the olive oil and butter. Roughly chop the onion and garlic and add to the pot. Scatter over the nigella seeds, salt, and a good grind of pepper and cook until the onion has softened—about 5 minutes.
Once the squash is cool enough to handle, cut the halves into cubes and add to the pot. Pour in the stock and let simmer for another 10–15 minutes.
Transfer to a blender or food processor and blitz until smooth. Return to the pot or another vessel for storage. Serve piping hot. Add a swirl of sour cream or crème fraîche if you wish.