No, this isn't a belated Halloween post just uncovered from beneath the pile of crap on my desk. This is a soup I crafted out of two left over sugar pumpkins that received a last minute stay of execution from Jack Skellington himself. You see, this year we bought three smallish pumpkins for seeds and to be converted to Jack-O-Lanterns to display for the exactly ZERO kids that visit us for "Tricks or Treats" on Halloween night (I don't even know why we bother). I topped and cleaned out all three of the pumpkins, then carved one into a fearsome looking squat demon of a thing, the other two I set aside for the girls to carve. Sadly, they never got around to carving theirs (too busy costuming for their candy confiscation tour, I guess), so ferocious ghouls they were not to be.
While my carved beast sat on the front stoop and was slowly consumed by our resident chipmunk and squirrel populations, the girl's pumpkins sat in the fridge for a day until I had a moment to deal with them. Not wanting to waste all their delicious flesh, I decided to chop them, roast them, and blitz them into this super tasty soup. They may have preferred to leave this world to the sound of little children begging for candy like it was crack, but I was quite pleased to find them smiling up at me from the bottom of my soup bowl, all dressed up in fresh garlic, ginger and cream.
Any of you looking for a starter soup for your Thanksgiving feast, this would make an excellent one.
Belated Boo! – Steve
Ingredients
- 3 pounds of roasted and peeled pumpkin (about 2 small)
- 3 cups milk
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 2 cups light cream
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 to 3-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated
- 2 small heads of garlic, cloves separated and peeled (3 cloves reserved for garnish)
- kosher salt and freshly ground white pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 400℉
- Top and gut the pumpkins, then slice into 1-2" thick wedges. Place the wedges on non-stick baking sheets, drizzle with some oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 25-35 minutes, flipping once halfway through cooking, until the wedges are nicely browned and the flesh is soft. Pull from the oven and let cool, then peel each wedge and discard the skin. Lower the oven temp to 250℉.
- Place all but three of the garlic cloves into a medium saucepan with the grated ginger and butter. Cook over medium heat until the garlic is lightly browned, then add the milk. Continue cooking over medium heat and bring to a gentle boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until the garlic is tender and the milk has reduced to about 2 cups, about 15-20 minutes. Pull the pan from the heat and reserve.
- Take the remaining 3 cloves of peeled garlic and slice them thinly. Place them on a non-stick baking sheet and then into the oven to roast to a golden brown, about 10 minutes. Reserve.
- In a large pot place the roasted and peeled pumpkin, the reduced milk with garlic and ginger, and the chicken stock. Simmer for 15-20 minutes to let the flavors meld together. Pull from the heat and stir in the cream, then working in batches, process the soup in a blender until very smooth. Return to a clean pot, taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as necessary.
- To serve, ladle the soup into warmed bowls and top with a drizzle of EVOO and a few roasted garlic chips.