Pumpkin Soup

With Halloween just around the corner, a trip to the pumpkin patch is, for some, inevitable, and for others, a reminder of how fall was done when we got to dress up AND get candy. At the farm, you're guaranteed to find pumpkins of all shapes, sizes, and creeds. And now, a word on pumpkins:

Pumpkins are a member of the Cucurbita genus, which also includes squash and several different species commonly referred to as pumpkin. Much of the pumpkin life-cycle depends on pollination by honeybees, which are disappearing at an alarming rate. If there is an inadequate honeybee population near the patch, the pumpkin will begin to grow, but abort before full development...which reminds me...the election is coming up...please vote for a pumpkin's right to choose.

Where was I? Ah, yes. Most of the pumpkins found at the celebrated patches in the fall have been grown specifically for your carving enjoyment. You might be able to salvage the seeds for a delicious snack (in fact, you should), but the flesh of the great gourd would be better served as insulation around your kitchen than as delicious fodder inside of it. For the culinary gems, pick up a sugar pumpkin, also known as a pie pumpkin (names like that have to be good). They're available at the patch (usually near the lady taking your 

money) or at the grocery store. They're smaller (5-8 lbs.) and, well, less developed, than their open-field counterparts. They pack just as many seeds as your Jack-O's will and the flesh is much more suited for our needs.

And now we arrive at those needs: a warm pumpkin soup to enjoy either alone on a quiet stormy fall evening, or with friends waiting for that first batch of goblins to reach your door on Halloween. The trickiest part of this endeavour will be the harvesting of the internal meat from your pumpkin. My gourd was about 6 lbs and seemed to supply me with plenty of the good stuff. 

First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a jelly roll pan with aluminum foil. Simply wash the outside of the pumpkin, cut out the stem and cut the whole thing in half (top to bottom). Using a 

metal spoon, scoop out the seeds and stringiness (please save the seeds, they're a great healthy snack) until your left with the tough meat. Place the pumpkins, flesh side down on the pan and roast until the meat can be easily scraped off with a fork: about an 1 - 1 1/2 hours. Let them cool 

on a wire rack and then scrape out the inside into a large bowl. Make sure to get everything that's orange. I tore it in to chunks and scraped it out with the same spoon that i used to get out the seeds and string. Set aside your yield until ready.

Then it's easy!

4 Tbsp unsalted butter

1 1/2 medium yellow onions, chopped

2 teaspoons minced garlic

1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

2 teaspoons curry powder

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

Pinch ground cayenne pepper (optional, but I recommend it)

6 cups of chopped roasted pumpkin

4 cups of chicken broth (or vegetable broth for vegetarian option)
2 cups of milk
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream

1. Melt your butter in a large saucepan (4-qt. should be ample room) and sweat the onions and garlic over medium-high heat until soft. Add your spices and stir for another minute.

2. Add chicken broth and pumpkin. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 15 minutes.

3.  Blend. This can get tricky. I set up a assembley line where I filled a Pyrex measuring glass with the soup, put it in the blender, then moved it into a large bowl. It should take a few batches, but you have to make sure it's smooth.

4. Return soup to saucepan and put on low heat. Add brown sugar and stir in until fully incorporated. Slowly pour in milk as you stir. Add cream.

5. Serve! If the soup is too spicy, add more cream. If not spicy enough-you know what to do!

Warning: this is A LOT of soup. I was surprised to see how much it made. Consider halving the recipe or having some friends. I froze half and am currently enjoy some of the unfrozen batch. Makes great leftovers! Oh, in the above picture, I added some cream to the finished product just to give it some flavor profile: you don't want every bite the same! Consider some heavy cream or creme fraiche as a final touch.