Recipe for Spicy Pumpkin Soup

It’s a Great Pumpkin Time of Year

Autumn is a fun time of year. Leaves are turning colors and the chill in the air lends a crispness to everything. As you go about your day’s errands, it’s inevitable that you will pass displays of pumpkins at the markets or, if you live in a more rural area, you may see an actual pumpkin patch or two each trying to look as sincere as possible. The inviting aroma of a pumpkin cooking filling the house with a warm, inviting, seasonal scent is an integral part of the holidays. Along with pumpkin pies, cakes, cookies, and mousse, you can make a delicious spicy pumpkin soup.

Use Your Pumpkin

Pumpkins are used as a vegetable in the kitchen, but it is technically a fruit. Although many different gourds and squash ripen in the autumn, it is the pumpkin that seems to rule the season. The colors of Halloween are black and orange, a shade of orange that seems particularly akin to the pumpkin. The popularity of pumpkins has spread as the pumpkin has been cultivated in diverse areas of the world. The pumpkin is a native of the western hemisphere but it is now found growing in any climate that is friendly to the orange orb. So although it had its start as a north American phenomenon, the pumpkin isn’t just an American treat but a part of many different cuisines. Like the tomato and the avocado, the pumpkin has taken root in the old world culture.

How to Pick a Pumpkin

When picking out a pumpkin for your spicy pumpkin soup recipe, be sure to look for:

• A pumpkin that seems heavy for its size.
• A firm pumpkin.
• Skin that is free of blemishes, cracks, bruises, or any spots that seem discolored.
• If the pumpkin has a soft spot, be sure to give it a miss.
• For cooking, be sure to pick up the “sweet” or “pie” variety.
• For this spicy pumpkin soup recipe, you will need about 2 pounds of peeled and seeded pumpkin, so when shopping for your pumpkin be sure to get one slightly heavier than 2 pounds.

Recipe For Spicy Pumpkin Soup

When I was at the farmers market to pick up the pumpkin for this recipe, I noticed that they also had some very nice looking butternut squash. It was about a pound and I thought that it would add a nice complimentary flavor to the pumpkin soup.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds fresh sugar pumpkin, peeled, seeded, diced
• 1 pound butternut, peeled, seeded, diced
• 4 tablespoons of chopped fresh ginger
• 5 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 sweet yellow onion, sliced thinly
• 1/2 bunch celery, diced
• 1/2 bunch leeks, diced
• 1 can coconut milk
• Nutmeg to taste
• Cinnamon to taste
• Crushed red pepper to taste
• Salt
• Crushed black pepper
• 1/4 cup sherry or apple cider vinegar
• 1 cup olive oil
• Vegetable stock if needed

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Toss the cut pumpkin, squash, ginger, garlic, onion, celery, and leeks with the olive oil, salt, and pepper. Add about a teaspoon of the cinnamon, the red pepper flakes, and the nutmeg.
3. Spread the mix out on a cookie sheet.
4. Make sure the vegetables are not piled up too much. It’s better to have them on a single layer.
5. Roast the vegetables for 45 minutes.
6. Once all the vegetables are soft, transfer them one batch at a time to a blender or food processor.
7. Purée the vegetables until smooth, adding the coconut milk as needed to loosen the purée.
8. Pour the purée into a pot and heat as you continue to purée the remaining vegetables.
9. Add the vinegar to the soup and taste for seasonings.
10. If the soup is too thick, add vegetable stock to thin it out.
11. Garnish with Crème Fraiche

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