🎃🥣 As the days get cooler, it’s time for a comforting bowl of soup! This butternut squash chickpea pasta soup is Grandma Sita’s delicious way of bringing seasonal vegetables, hearty chickpeas and pasta together in one warming pot. With colourful vegetables, aromatic spices and plenty of flavour, it is the kind of homemade soup that makes you feel cosy from the very first spoonful.
🌱🍲 Grandma Sita loves recipes that make every ingredient count. This soup brings together butternut squash, kale, cabbage, potatoes and mushrooms with chickpeas and pasta, creating a wonderfully hearty meal from simple, everyday ingredients. It is also a great recipe for using up vegetables that are waiting in the fridge.
💚 This comforting vegan soup is perfect for a chilly lunch or an easy evening meal. The combination of chickpeas and pasta makes it satisfying, while the seasonal vegetables add plenty of colour, texture and flavour. And because everything comes together in one pot, there is less washing up too!
👵🌱 It is exactly the kind of cooking Grandma Sita loves: simple ingredients, seasonal produce and a little imagination. You can adapt the vegetables and spices depending on what you already have at home, making this soup an easy addition to your zero-waste kitchen.
INGREDIENTS
1 white onion, finely chopped
2–3 garlic cloves, minced
1 bunch kale, chopped
½ white cabbage, chopped
½ butternut squash, peeled and cubed
3 small potatoes, peeled and cubed
6 mushrooms, chopped
1 can cooked chickpeas, drained and rinsed
150 g pasta, such as fideos or spaghetti
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp sweet paprika
A pinch of chilli flakes (optional)
Salt and black pepper, to taste
Vegetable oil, for sautéing
METHOD
1. Prepare the vegetables. Wash all the vegetables well. Peel the butternut squash and potatoes and cut them into small cubes. Chop the kale, mushrooms, cabbage, onion and garlic.
2. Sauté the onion and garlic. Heat a little vegetable oil in a large pot over a medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and sauté until softened and translucent.
3. Add the vegetables. Add the butternut squash, potatoes, kale, cabbage and mushrooms. Stir well and cook for a few minutes.
4. Add the spices and water. Add the cumin, turmeric, sweet paprika and chilli flakes, if using. Stir well and cook for a couple of minutes to release the flavours. Then add enough water to completely cover the vegetables. Bring to the boil.
5. Simmer and add the pasta. Reduce the heat and cook for approximately 20 minutes. After about 9–12 minutes, add the pasta. If using spaghetti, break it into shorter pieces before adding it. Add the drained and rinsed chickpeas at the same time.
6. Check and finish. Continue cooking until the vegetables are tender and the pasta is al dente. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and black pepper. Remove the pot from the heat.
7. Serve and enjoy! Ladle the hot soup into individual bowls and serve warm. A comforting, colourful and hearty bowl of butternut squash chickpea pasta soup — the Grandma Sita way!
👵💚 Grandma Sita’s tips
- 🍲 Make a big batch: This hearty soup is perfect for batch cooking. Make extra portions and keep them in the fridge for an easy lunch or dinner over the next few days. You can also freeze portions for another day — a simple way to save time and make the most of every ingredient.
- 🥕 Use the vegetables you have: Don’t worry if your fridge looks a little different from Grandma Sita’s. You can swap or add seasonal vegetables depending on what needs using. Carrots, courgettes, spinach or leftover cooked vegetables can all find a happy home in this soup.
- 🫘 Make the most of your chickpeas: Chickpeas add texture and make this soup wonderfully satisfying. If you have leftover cooked beans or another type of pulse in the cupboard, they can be used instead.
- 🍝 Watch the pasta: Pasta continues to absorb liquid as it sits, so the soup may become thicker the next day. When reheating, simply add a splash of water or vegetable stock to bring it back to your favourite consistency.
- 🌶️ Adjust the spices to your taste: Cumin, turmeric, paprika and chilli give the soup plenty of warmth, but you can easily adapt the seasoning. Use what you have in your spice cupboard and make the bowl your own.
- 🥔 Don’t waste the vegetable trimmings: Clean vegetable peelings and suitable scraps can be saved to make homemade vegetable stock. Just remember to use only clean, good-quality scraps and avoid anything mouldy or spoiled.
- ❄️ Freeze for later: If you know you won’t eat the whole pot in time, freeze portions once cooled. Label them with the date and enjoy them later for a quick, comforting meal.
📗 Did you know?
🍲 Soup is one of the simplest ways to turn a collection of ingredients into one nourishing meal. Vegetables, pulses, pasta and herbs or spices can all come together in one pot, making it a wonderfully flexible dish for everyday cooking.
🎃 Butternut squash is particularly lovely in soups because it becomes soft and creamy as it cooks, adding natural sweetness and body to the broth. Combined with chickpeas and pasta, it makes this a filling bowl that is both comforting and colourful.
🌱 Grandma Sita believes that good cooking doesn’t always mean following a recipe exactly. Traditional home cooking has always been about adapting to what is available, using seasonal produce and making something delicious from simple ingredients. This is one of the reasons soups are such a wonderful zero-waste kitchen staple.
🗑️ A little food-waste fact
Food waste can happen in any kitchen, often simply because ingredients are forgotten, portions are too large or leftovers are not used in time. In Spain, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food tracks food waste in households, including both unused ingredients and prepared dishes that are thrown away.
🥕 The good news is that small kitchen habits can make a difference. Planning meals, storing food properly, cooking with what you already have and finding creative ways to use leftovers can all help us waste less.
🍲 A soup like this is a perfect example. A few vegetables that need using, some chickpeas from the cupboard and a handful of pasta can become a delicious, comforting meal instead of ending up in the bin.
Before you throw it away, take a second look — it might just be the beginning of your next delicious recipe! 💚
♻️ Make the most of what you have — the Grandma Sita way
🌎 Grandma Sita reminds us that zero-waste cooking starts with valuing the food already in our kitchens. Seasonal vegetables, leftover pulses, an open packet of pasta and a few simple spices can become a comforting meal when we give them a little time and imagination.
💚 Cook with what you have, save what you can, freeze the rest and waste less. Because sometimes the most delicious meals begin with the ingredients that simply need a little love. Less waste, more flavour — the Grandma Sita way!