The chill can be noticed in the northern hemisphere and soup becomes more tempting than it has the past few months. Walnuts, more so than other nuts, contain substantial amounts of omega-3 fatty acids and, to give everyone more reason to eat walnuts, the American Food & Drug Administration “announced that it would allow qualified claims about the health benefits of integrating walnut consumption into the American diet….having reviewed 11 human studies on the relationship between nut and in some cases, specifically, walnut consumption and the incidence of Coronary Heart Disease (CHD), they determined

that significant scientific agreement exists to support health claims from eating walnuts”. For walnut lovers the world over this is excellent news  because, not only are they delicious but now proved to be beneficial for our health.

Ingredients

• 1,000 ml of pumpkin, cubed and peeled
• 1,000 ml homemade chicken stock
• 500 ml whipping cram
• 250 ml walnuts, chopped and toasted
• 250 ml onions, chopped
• 1 tbsp yellow curry paste
• 1 tbsp  extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• Plain Greek yogurt, fresh coriander leaves and toasted walnuts (chopped) to garnish

Method

• Heat the oil over medium heat in a large pot and add the chopped onions, the salt and pepper and stir-fry until the onions are soft and translucent.
• Stir in curry paste and cook for about a minute, pour in the stock and bring to boil over medium high heat for about 20 minutes.
• Transfer pumpkin with liquid to blender (or use a good handheld blender) and then add the walnuts and process until it is velvety and very smooth.
• The mixture will remain quite thick – then return the purée to the pot and slowly whisk in cream, heat the soup over a low heat until heated through but don’t boil otherwise it will separate.
• Serve in warmed bowls, garnished with a dollop of the yogurt, the coriander and toasted walnuts (or broken pieces of the walnuts).