Pumpkin (or Winter Squash) Soup

Makes: 4 to 6 servings

Time: About 1 hour, mostly unattended

M O

All of the other members of the hard-skinned squash family (see page 263), from the most common (butternut squash and pumpkin) to the most esoteric (look around: they’re everywhere), are great. All of them (except maybe the oversized pumpkins used for jack-o-lanterns, which are not bred for eating, really) deliver incredibly smooth texture when puréed, with or without cream. And since winter squashes are easy to grow and the vines are prolific, this is a soup that’s popular almost everywhere, as you’ll see from the variations.

• 3 tablespoons olive oil or butter
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 pounds sugar pumpkin or any winter squash like butternut or kabocha, peeled, seeded, and cut into 2-inch cubes
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage or rosemary
• Salt and pepper
• 5 cups vegetable stock (pages 97–100) or water
• 1 cup cream or nondairy milk

1. Put the oil in a large pot over medium heat. When it’s hot, add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until it begins to soften, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the pumpkin and sage, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook until fragrant, another minute or so.
2. Add the stock and bring to a boil, then lower the heat so the soup bubbles gently but steadily. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the pumpkin starts to fall apart, 20 to 30 minutes.
3. Use an immersion blender to purée the soup in the pot. Or let the soup cool a little, carefully purée it in a blender (working in batches if necessary), and return it to the pot. (You can prepare the soup in advance up to this point. Cool, cover, and refrigerate for up to 2 days. Add the cream and serve cold or proceed with the recipe.)
4. Add the cream and gently heat the soup without letting it boil. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Garnish with an extra grinding of pepper if you’d like, and serve.

Pumpkin Soup with Chipotle A little bit of smoky heat: In Step 1, add 1 tablespoon minced garlic to the onion. When you add the stock in Step 2, stir in 1 or 2 canned chipotle chiles, chopped with a little of their adobo (be careful, these can be hot). Garnish with chopped fresh cilantro and toasted pumpkin seeds (see page 299).

Indian-Style Pumpkin Soup Omit the sage or rosemary and use good-quality vegetable oil or butter instead of olive oil. In Step 1, along with the onion, cook 1 tablespoon minced garlic, 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger, and 1 tablespoon curry powder. Substitute coconut milk for the cream. If you like, garnish with ¼ cup chopped fresh mint.