Pumpkin Soup with Smoked Paprika
INGREDIENTS
- 1 4-5 pound cooking pumpkin* to yield 6 cups roasted pumpkin OR 3 (15 ounce) cans of pumpkin puree
- 4 Tbsp butter
- 2 medium yellow onions, chopped, about 2 cups
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 Tbsp smoked paprika (we didn't have smoked:()
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 pinch cayenne pepper
- 1 large tart green apple (Granny Smith) peeled, cored, chopped (about 2 cups)
- 4 cups chicken broth (or vegetable broth for vegetarian option)
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup milk
- 1/2 cup cream
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 sprig fresh sage or 1/4 teaspoon ground sage
- Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
* Most pumpkins in the store are meant for jack-o-lanterns, not eating. Use a sugar pumpkin or a Japanese Kabocha pumpkin if you are going to cook with it.
METHOD
Kabocha or sugar pumpkins.
1 To make pumpkin purée, cut a sugar or Kabocha pumpkin in half, scoop out the seeds* and stringy stuff (an ice cream scoop works well for this purpose), lie face down on a foil or Silpat lined baking sheet. Bake at 350°F until soft, about 45 min to an hour. Cool, scoop out the flesh. Freeze whatever you don't use for future use.
* Don't throw away the seeds! Use them to make toasted pumpkin seeds
2 Melt butter in a 4-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 4 minutes. Add smoked paprika, cayenne, and cumin and stir for a minute more.
3 Add chopped apple and pumpkin purée. Add broth, water. Mix well with a wooden spoon. Season with a little salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, partially cover, and simmer for 20 minutes or until the apples are cooked through.
4 Working in batches, transfer soup to a blender or a food processor. Cover tightly and blend until smooth. If you want extra smooth soup, pass the purée through a food mill, after it's been through the blender. Return the soup to the saucepan.
5 With soup on low heat, slowly add the milk and cream, stirring to incorporate. Add salt to taste. Adjust other seasonings to taste.
Can make a day ahead.
Serves 8.