Just in time for Thanksgiving, a tasty, simple soup that makes a perfect first course for a big seasonal meal or a hearty meal soup in it's own right. And it's veggie—actually vegan.
This is one of those incredibly simple one-pot dishes that delivers beyond expectations. I've always found it makes a great opening course for a big Thanksgiving meal, but it's also fantastic as a seasonal meal-soup in its own right.
And, it revives just as well from frozen, making it one of those great options to chuck in the microwave when you get home from a long, dark winter's day and want to keep it simple.
These quantities make enough to readily serve four or so people as a starter—soup is very adaptable, simply add more stock diluted in water and cook in—or two to three people as a meal in itself.
Never one to make things simple, the kind of pumpkin you use is not as obvious as it sounds and is going to depend somewhat on the varieties available where you are. That's okay, but you should consider how sweet you like your dishes. Overall, I think this dish is better suited to sweeter pumpkin varieties—I often use butternut squash as an alternative if only the watery, bland pumpkin varieties are available. No, luckily I'm not going to wax lyrical about the comparative varieties. That's the only a tip.
Shopping List
Approx 650g fresh pumpkin (or butternut squash), cut into large segments (and peeled unless young with very tender skin)
1 medium-to-large sweet potato, peeled and cut into large segments
2 shots of bourbon (optional)
1 cinnamon stick
3 or 4 sticks of fresh celery, sliced
1 x vegetable stock cubes diluted in approx 750ml of boiling water (NB. Make sure they're good quality such as the organic ones from Kallo)
I large white, red or brown onion, cubed
Peeled, grated fresh root ginger; about a thumb's length
3 gloves of garlic, peeled and crushed or finely grated
A generous clutch of fresh parsley, roughly chopped
4 or 5 tbspns peanut oil
Approx. 150g sweetcorn, tinned (drained) or frozen (defrosted)
1 or 2 red fresh red chillies, finely sliced
2 generous tbspns of crunchy peanut butter, ideally of a variety without any added sugar (but not of the skin-on kind)
1 heaped tspn pimentón, coarsely ground
salt, to taste
3 or 4 spring onions, sliced, for the garnish
Cooking Method
Heat the peanut oil in a large pot with a lid, ensuring it's evenly spread. When hot, add the grated root ginger and garlic and allow it to sweat. Before it begins to catch, add the onions and two-thirds of the red chillies. Stir vigorously, reduce the heat, cover and sweat
When the onions show signs of becoming transparent—but not yet browned—add the celery. Stir thoroughly, adding a little more peanut oil if necessary. Re-cover and gently sweat until the celery becomes semi-transparent
Turn up the heat. Throw in the bourbon (optional), pimentón and cinnamon stick. Cook off the liquid, stirring regularly
When the contents have become fairly "dry", add about half of the diluted stock and all of the the large pumpkin and sweet potato segments and 70% of the parsley. Cover and bring to the boil. Allow the contents to boil vigorously for about 10mins
Stir the contents and add the remainder of the liquid vegetable stock. Bring this back to the boil, stirring regularly. Re-cover, reduce the heat and allow to simmer for at least 20mins ( but I usually do it for at least 40mins on a very low heat)
When the pumpkin and sweet potato is cooked through and tender—it's fine if you cook it a little longer and it's already beginning to break apart—remove the pot from the heat. Remove the cinnamon, then blend the contents using a handheld blender
Return to a medium heat, adding a little additional diluted vegetable stock—or simply hot water— if necessary, to reach your desired consistency
Stir in the peanut butter. You should find that the "butter" part melts into the smooth soup and only the "crunchy" bits remain discernible
Add the sweetcorn, stirring so that it heats through completely. But, it doesn't need to "cook"
Turn off the heat, cover and allow to rest for a few minutes before plating or serving in a tureen. Garnish with the remaining uncooked sliced red chillies and crushed peanuts and chopped fresh parsley mixed with sliced spring onions. If opting for it as a meal-soup, it's great with an artisanal bread of choice, but doesn't need this as a first course as part of a larger meal
Alternatives
This is a veggie/vegan dish, but it you really can't cope without meat, it's also delicious when garnished with a few rashers of maple-cured bacon, first cubed and grilled or flash-fried in a separate pan, and then added at the serving/plating stage
If you like the deeper, smokier flavours, but don't like the idea of bourbon, try adding 2 "shots" of cooled strong tea instead, ideally lapsang souchong
The combination of red chillies and pimentón, even at these quantities gives this dish a fair kick. I you don't like spicy, substitute the chillies with sweet red peppers and the pimentón with paprika
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