SERVES 6
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for the crostini and for serving
50g unsalted butter
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
a small bunch of fresh marjoram leaves
1.5kg pumpkin, peeled, seeded and diced
200g new potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 dried red chillies, crumbled
1 litre best quality chicken stock (for homemade see the book)
FOR THE CROSTINI
6 slices ciabatta bread
1 garlic clove, peeled and halved
freshly grated Parmesan
● Heat the extra virgin olive oil and butter in a saucepan and gently fry the chopped garlic with the marjoram leaves until soft. Add the pumpkin and potatoes, and continue to cook for a minute. Add the chillies and season well with sea salt and black pepper. Pour in enough stock just to cover the pumpkin. Bring to the boil, then turn down the heat and simmer for 20-25 minutes or until the pumpkin is tender, adding more stock if necessary to keep the pumpkin covered.
● Strain about a third of the stock from the pumpkin and set aside. Pour the contents of the pan into a food processor and pulse: the mixture should be very thick. Return to the saucepan and add the strained-off stock plus any remaining stock. Check for seasoning. The soup will be very thick. Reheat gently for serving.
● For the crostini, toast the slices of ciabatta, then rub with the garlic halves and drizzle over extra virgin olive oil.
● Serve the soup with Parmesan, extra virgin olive oil and the crostini.