Spicy Pumpkin Soup

I love this fall soup. This is actually the third pumpkin soup recipe we've published (see Spunky Punkin and Summer Pumpkin for more ideas). Seminole pumpkins are one of the powerhouse vegetables we grow here - extremely prolific, they grow in the heat when little else does, are packed with vitamins, and are somewhat dense calorie-wise. One of those things we would grow (and eat) a lot of if we were relying on our garden for sustenance. This version is quite spicy.

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• one large onion
• 3 cloves minced garlic
• a pinch of crushed red pepper
• one tablespoon curry powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• pinch of cayenne (optional)
• six cups of chopped, roasted pumpkin (roasting instructions here)
• 5 cups vegetable broth
• 2 cups milk
• 1/8 cup brown sugar
• salt to taste

Saute onion and garlic in olive oil until onion is transculent. Add spices and stir around for a moment more. Add pumpkin and broth, bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for about 10 minutes. Transfer soup in batches to a blender and blend till smooth. Add sugar and milk, adjust seasonings. Do not boil again after milk has been added. Serve with a sprinkle of chives. 

Comments

[Kristi]

Hi Kellie- we've been having trouble getting our seminole pumpkins to grow- they start all wonderful and leafy and then--- something eats them all within a few days. maybe snails. any ideas? have you tried the beer trap thing? thanks, Kristi

[Kelli]

Hi Kristie,
I haven't had trouble with slugs and snails on seminole pumpkins, but I had had snails on other plants. I ended up just digging around for them at the base of the plants that were being eaten and disposing of them; it seemed to do the trick. I have heard that the beer trap works great though. While seminole pumpkins do great in the heat, my best crops resulted from planting them in the spring (March and April here) and not waiting till it was very hot (and more pesty). Getting a jump on growth in the cooler weather seemed to help.