Butternut squash and tomato soup with ras el hanout

I've been hooked to the spice mixture ras el hanout ever since I tried it in this lamb dish. After buying it, the moment I remembered once in a while about the jar quietly resting in my cupboard, I went to the kitchen, I opened the jar and sniffed... Absolutely true. As I already told you everything about it in the mentioned post, I won't repeat it here. Just read it, study it and I will cold-call you one of these days... At that time, I used the sauce remaining from the lamb tagine to make a tasty veggie soup that disappeared almost immediately. So here it is another delicious soup with ras el hanout.


This rustic soup is in fact inspired in this one, which is made with roasted vegetables instead of the boring boiled variety, and it's then pureed. Let's get to work.

Tomato and butternut squash soup with ras el hanout

• 1 medium-small butternut squash
• 5 good tomatos (organic is better, then maybe they'll have some taste)
• 5 cloves garlic
• 1 onion
• A dash of olive oil
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 tbsp ras el hanout (or 3/4 if you like a spicier soup)
• Salt to taste

This soup is incredibly simple to prepare and it's good for lunch and as a first course. The roasting gives it a very different flavor from that of plain boiled vegetables. But remember it's not the best choice for kids, because the ras el hanout adds a slight heat.

1. Preheat the oven to 180ºC.
2. Cut the butternut squash in quarters. Cut the tomatos in half. Put both on an oven tray (better lined with aluminum foil). Drizzle with some olive oil. Add the unpeeled cloves of garlic.
3. Peel the onion and wrap in aluminum foil.
4. Slide the tray in the oven. Watch the garlic carefully, if it's tender will only take 10 minutes to roast. The rest of the vegetables will take around half an hour, except the onion, which usually takes longer.
5. Once all the vegetables are tender and thoroughly cooked, take them out and leave to cool slightly. Then peel the garlic and squash.
6. Put all the vegetables in a food processor or blender, add the water and puree to the desired fineness. You won't need to peel the tomatos if you're device is powerful enough. You can add more water if you like it thinner. I personally like my soup thick and chunky... very rustic.
7. Then add the spice and salt and boil the soup for 5 or 6 minutes for the flavors to meld. Test for salt and serve!

When you smell the aromas in your house after preparing this soup, you'll also get hooked to ras el hanout...