It's harvest time again, one of my favourite times of the year in the kitchen.
Every day is busy and creativity at it's highest while trying to use up the glut of vegetables that can't be stored over winter.

I'm not really a pumpkin fan, preferring the creaminess of butternut squash over what sometimes is an over abundant tasteless amount of flesh offered by each pumpkin.

However, this year my French neighbour popped by with a few seedlings telling me that they were squash and would be really nice for soups.
So, I stuck them in the garden and forgot about them until they started to grow. 
And grow, and grow they did!
Soon I realized that they were pumpkin and they were going to get really big but they looked great in my veg patch so I left them alone while secretly making a list of which neighbours were going to get one of them when they were ready.

Here we are, 6 pumpkins delivered to unsuspecting neighbours (snigger snigger!) and a couple left for me to get creative with.
I have roasted, fried, pureed and disguised as much as I can get away with. There's still tons left and I haven't even started with the butternut yet!

This Coconut Pumpkin and Leek Soup came to mind as a way to use some of the glut of leeks from that same garden. I love leeks so a glut of them is a good thing if you ask me.
It's a bit of a spin on Leek and Potato soup with a bit of Asia thrown in for added flavour.

It's an easy soup to make and uses everyday ingredients.
I use Chilli and Cumin Seed in the recipe to give it a bit of depth and you can use as much as you like or leave it out if you prefer a more traditional taste.

The key to this soup, and a bit of a laborious task, is to pass the mixture through a sieve which leaves a really silky texture and (IMO) enhances the coconut flavour.
Pumpkin and leeks can be a little stringy once cooked and once removed the flavours left are a bit more delicate. Of course if you prefer a more chunky rustic style soup you can skip this part.

Finally, don't throw away the seeds.
Wash them off, pat them dry, sprinkle with sea salt and black pepper and roast in the oven for about 10-15 minutes until golden and popping.
They make an awesome snack and are great added to the soup as a garnish.