Monday, November 26, 2012

Pumpkin Soup Shooters

Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday -food, food, football!  I was sad to not spend Thanksgiving at home for the first time in my life (and of course missed Big Wednesday back in the 'dale), but we had a great time celebrating with our new Hong Kong extended family.

Our friends Rachel and Neal hosted a delicious dinner on Saturday - with all the traditional fixin's! The last few years at home, my contribution has always been a Thanksgiving soup, and so I decided that this year I would bring that tradition to Hong Kong.

Tried and true, I made this soup last Thanksgiving and it was a huge hit! Last year I made it with squash, but this year I used Japanese pumpkin, which is really easy to find pre-cut in any market here.  The original recipe from Sunset magazine suggests serving this soup in mini pumpkins - a beautiful presentation! I served it in tall shot glasses as a passed hors d'oeuvre.

Pumpkin Soup with Pumpkin Seed Mint Pesto

What You'll Need:

For The Soup:
large onion, chopped
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh ginger 
  • 2 tablespoons evoo
  • large garlic cloves, chopped
  • 2 teaspoons ground coriander
  • 4 1/2 cups peeled, 1-in. chunks pumpkin or other orange fleshed squash 
  • 4 1/2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
  • 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper

  • For the Pesto:
  • small garlic clove
  • 1/3 cup fresh mint leaves, plus slivered leaves
  • 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 cup evoo
  • 1/4 cup salted roasted pumpkin seeds
What To Do:
  1. Start with the soup: Sauté the onion and ginger in oil in a medium pot over medium-high heat until golden, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and coriander and cook until softened, 1 minute, then add pumpkin, broth, salt, and pepper. Simmer, covered, until pumpkin is very tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Purée in batches in a blender or with an immersion blender until very smooth.
  2. Make your pesto: Combine garlic, whole mint leaves, salt, and 1 tbsp. oil in a food processor.  Add remaining oil and pumpkin seeds and pound until coarsely crushed.
Serve: Drop small spoonfuls of pesto over bowls of soup, garnish with slivered mint, and serve remaining pesto on the side.


Serves 4-5

Enjoy! 


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