I realize it's no longer the fall, but I really wanted some pumpkin soup this week. And this is one of my favorites, in addition to the new pumpkin shrimp bisque I discovered last year. It's very simple, and the garnish is awesome. I'm pretty sure it would go well on other things too, but haven't figured out what just yet. For a touch of class, drizzle some honey over the top - people will think you went to culinary school, even when you just took a bunch of things out of cans and stirred them together (I'm pretty sure this is what some pros do anyway).
Pumpkin soup! |
Pumpkin Soup with Cran-Apple Relish
based on a Rachael Ray recipe
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 fresh bay leaf, or 2 dried
- 2 ribs celery with greens, finely chopped
- 1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
- Salt and pepper
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, or 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 2 teaspoons hot sauce (I used Frank's, or you could use Tabasco), or to taste
- 6 cups vegetable stock
- 1 (28-ounce) can cooked pumpkin puree
- 2 cups heavy cream (I use 1 cup heavy cream and 1 cup half-and-half)
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Relish:
- 1 crisp apple, such as McIntosh or Granny Smith, finely chopped
- 1/4 red onion, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1/2 cup dried sweetened cranberries, chopped
- 1 teaspoon chili (or chile) powder
- 2 teaspoons honey
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Most of the ingredients, after starting the onion and celery. This all comes together quickly. |
Heat a medium soup pot over medium to medium high heat. Add the oil and melt the butter. Add bay, celery, and onion. Season the vegetables with salt and pepper. Cook 6 or 7 minutes, until tender. Add flour, thyme and hot sauce, to taste, then cook flour a minute. Whisk in stock and bring liquid to a bubble. Whisk in pumpkin in large spoonfuls to incorporate it into the broth. Simmer soup 10 minutes to thicken a bit then add in cream and nutmeg. Reduce heat to low.
Stir in the flour after cooking the vegetables, and you end up with something like a roux - this will thicken the soup |
While soup cooks, assemble the relish: combine apple, onion, lemon juice, cranberries, chili powder, honey and cinnamon. I used the same chile powder that I use in my beef chili - a mix of dried peppers without the other ingredients found in chili powder. Didn't seem to make a huge difference, so use whatever you've got. I used a low quality chili powder from a can once and it actually did ruin this, so be sure to use something decent, and don't go overboard.
This garnish is arguably the best part of the soup |
Remove bay leaves from soup and pulse with a stick blender to puree the sauteed vegetables. Adjust seasonings in soup and relish and serve soup in shallow bowls with a few spoonfuls of relish and a drizzle of honey.
No comments:
Post a Comment