Butternut and apple soup with salt and vinegar kale chips

Last weekend was rainy and I jumped at the opportunity to make a delicious, rustic butternut and apple soup that was just perfect for a wet and windy day snuggled up indoors.

Butternut and apple soup with salt 'n vinegar kale chips Credit: Jo Anderson

• serves

  4

• prep

  15 minutes

• cook

  25 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

We eat kale chips a lot. They are by no means a filling snack but there is a strange satisfaction that comes with making them well and getting that sweet spot where they are just crispy, but not flaking apart when you try to eat them. My salt and vinegar kale chips go perfectly with this soup and add a bit of excitement to it.

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp coconut oil
• 1 onion, sliced
• 1 butternut pumpkin, peeled, seeds discarded and diced into 3 cm cubes
• 1 apple, peeled, cored and diced
• 1 tsp (heaped) ground ginger
• 1 tsp (heaped) ground cumin
• sea salt and pepper to season
• 2 litres chicken or vegetable stock
• 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 bunch (5 stalks) kale
• 100 ml cream or Greek yoghurt 

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 220ºC.

In a large pot on medium-high heat, melt 1 tablespoon of the coconut oil and sauté the onion for 1 minute. Add the diced butternut and allow it to caramelise slightly, stirring now and then, for about 5 minutes. Add the apple and the spices and season with salt and pepper. 

Pour in the chicken stock and 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar, add the bay leaves and bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and allow to simmer until the butternut is soft, about 10-15 minutes. 

While the soup is cooking tear the kale leaves from the stems, wash, then dry in a salad spinner and set aside on kitchen towel - the leaves need to be very dry. 

Transfer the kale to a baking sheet lined with greaseproof paper. Gently massage the remaining coconut oil into the leaves, then sprinkle with sea salt and remaining apple cider vinegar. Place in the hot oven for about 10 minutes, or until slightly brown but not burnt on the edges. Remove from the oven and set aside.

Remove the bay leaves from the soup and using a blender or a stick blender, blend the soup until smooth. Add the cream or yoghurt, reserving a little to serve with, then season to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle into bowls, garnish with the kale chips and remaining cream or yoghurt and serve.

  

Recipe from The Luminous Kitchen by Jo Anderson, with photographs by Jo Anderson.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.

We eat kale chips a lot. They are by no means a filling snack but there is a strange satisfaction that comes with making them well and getting that sweet spot where they are just crispy, but not flaking apart when you try to eat them. My salt and vinegar kale chips go perfectly with this soup and add a bit of excitement to it.