Bikini Butternut Soup

Christmas weight gain is nobody’s friend. Beat the bloat and reboot your metabolism with Heidi Selwood’s fat-busting butternut squash soup.

Ingredients:

• 1 large butternut squash, cut into 2cm cubes skinned and seeds removed (if you do not have butternut squash, the recipe works just as well with sweet potatoes)
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 6 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed
• 200g red split lentils
• 2 tbsp fresh sage
• 2 tbsp fresh rosemary
• 2-3 vegetable stock cubes, mixed into 2 litres
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 chilli, diced
• Yoghurt, to serve
• Fresh bread, to serve
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Method:

1. In a large saucepan, heat the oil over a medium heat until sizzling and then add the onions and cook for 3-4 minutes until softened and golden.
2. Add the garlic, chilli, sage and rosemary and gently fry for a further 1 minute.
3. Now add the butternut squash and 1 litre of stock and leave to boil for 15 minutes
4. Once the squash has soften slightly, add the red lentils, final litre of stock and season with salt and pepper. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer and cover for 35 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. With a potato masher, gently mash some of the squash into the soup (I did not mash it all because I like my soup chunky)
6. To serve, dollop each portion of soup with yoghurt and a chunk of fresh bread. If you’re feeling fancy, top it off with a poached egg and some good quality parmesan cheese.