07.28.07
Pumpkin (the food)
I read that pumpkin is good for diabetics, and before I went back to reread (and thus discover that the research referred to the Asian pumpkin), I had bought three cans of pumpkin. In looking at the nutrition facts label (thankfully required by Federal law), it actually is a pretty good food in any case: low calorie, high fiber, etc. But, man, is it bland. If you eat it straight out of the can, as I tried, you pretty much have to force yourself to swallow it.
But then I had an inspiration: as I warmed up the soup today, I took some of the liquid, put into a bowl with the rest of a can of the pumpkin, whisked it together, and added it back to thicken the soup. (My soups tend to change character from day to day as I think of things to add. Soup arithmetic: addition is easy, subtraction difficult.)
And that made me realize that canned pumpkin could serve as the basis for some very nice soups. Off the top of my head:
Spicy pumpkin-butternut-corn soup
A good amount of chicken stock, whisk in a can of pumpkin, add chunks of butternut squash (peeled or not, it makes no difference), kernels of corn, cayenne pepper and/or minced habaneros, dash of Worcestershire, salt. Bring to boil, simmer until butternut squash is tender. Could also include bite-sized chunks of boneless, skinless chicken breast. Tomatoes? Or instead perhaps some heavy cream.
The Niece said,
28 July 2007 at 6:05 pm
Try this, it’s AWESOME:
Risotto with Pumpkin, Sausage, and Sage
6 c chicken stock
1 can pumpkin
4 T olive oil
1 lb Italian sausage, casing removed
6 lg cloves garlic, thickly sliced
1/4 c finely chopped onion
2 c Arborio rice
2 T chopped fresh sage (2 t dried)
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 c white wine
1/2 c heavy cream
4 T parmesan cheese
In pot, whisk together stock and pumpkin, heat to boil and keep at a simmer. Heat oil in heavy saucepan over medium heat. Brown sausage, breaking up the meat. Remove sausage from pan and set aside, leaving 2-3 T fat in pan. Add garlic and onion to pan and cook until tender. Stir in rice and half the sage. Cook until rice is coated and opaque (1 minute). Return sausage to pot, add wine, simmer and stir until liquid is reduced by half. Add simmering stock, 1/2 cup at a time, to rice and stir until liquid is almost absorbed. Continue adding stock and stirring until rice is just tender (about 30 minutes). Remove from heat, stir in remaining sage, cream, parmesan, and salt and pepper. Serve hot with extra parmesan.
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Also, pumpkin and coconut milk go nicely together. You could try your Spicy pumpkin-butternut-corn soup with coconut milk instead of heavy cream.
Seamus said,
28 July 2007 at 9:31 pm
Boy, have I got a nice curried pumpkin soup for you. I’ll post the recipe as soon as I finish figuring out what might correspond to my usual ad hoc measurements! Like the notion of habaneros–that’ll help almost anything.
LeisureGuy said,
29 July 2007 at 8:12 am
You know, I woke up this morning thinking that curry would be a nice addition to the pumpkin soup. I’m eager to see your recipe.
Seamus said,
29 July 2007 at 10:03 am
Uh-oh! I compared notes with my pal who made the initial version of this I tried, and neither of us has an exact recipe. I can, on the other hand, give you a good rundown of the ingredients. I tend to experiment far more than I follow recipes, but I think this combo of ingredients ought to get something mighty good happening. I start with stock, vegetable or chicken, add the pumpkin (or butternut squash, or both), let it get nice and smooth. I then add finely chopped onion, a little garlic, and sometimes sausage (often andouille) that’s been sauteed together in lots of olive oil. I then add Madras brand curry powder and/or my own mix (cumin, turmeric, fenugreek, red pepper, black pepper, cardamom, allspice, a touch of ginger, salt). If I’m feeling particularly multi-ethnic, some chipotles are nice, but that can muddy it up too much. I usually stick to red pepper. Can you tell I like hot food yet? Sorry I don’t have better measurements, but it’s very much a make-it-up-as-you-go thing! I cook it a good while so everything gets well-acquainted and the texture is very smooth. In the last 10 minutes or so, I add a fair bit of half-and-half. The good news is that I have yet to make a batch that was messed up, though some have certainly been better than others. I do find that it takes a lot more curry powder than it seems like it will.
Hope you’ll give it a try! I’d love to hear any additions or versions you come up with. I like the Worcestershire addition–gonna have to try that.