Sandi is blogging from the WhistleStop Cafe kitchen. It's all about good home cooking; food, family and fun. Thousands of posts . . .

~In the south and around the world.



Friday, November 20, 2009

Soup on Thanksgiving Day... Hmmmm~

Are you looking for something that will make this Thanksgiving memorable? I love the idea of a warm bowl of soup early in the day then a 'scaled back' feast in the afternoon. This pumpkin soup is better made a day or two ahead... that's just what I need!
I found the recipe at Epicurious, then changed it up a bit by roasting the pumpkin first. This adds a level of flavor that can't be matched with canned pumpkin. Roasted Pumpkin Soup
2 Tbs olive oil
2 large carrots
2 celery stalks
1 large onion
4 cloves garlic
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 2-pound pumpkin
6 cups chicken broth
5 whole cloves
1/2 cup whipping cream
2 tablespoons honey
Dice carrots, celery, onion and garlic; sauté until tender in olive oil. Cut pumpkin into large chunks sprinkle with olive oil add cloves and thyme, roast at 400° until soft and browned- about 20 minutes. When cooled, skin and put the pumpkin into the pot (remove cloves). Add 6 cups stock. Cover and simmer.
Purée soup in batches in blender return to the pot. Stir in cream and honey. Bring to simmer. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

The honey and cloves make it a little sweet and a little savory, the flavor roasted pumpkin comes through. I topped these with a parmesan croutons.
There will still be room for that pumpkin pie and all the trimmins.

Y'all enjoy!
Sandi

10 comments:

Char said...

looks yummy and yes, we're scaling back this year. I'm only going to make a pan of dressing and that's it.

Sandi @the WhistleStop Cafe said...

Char~ only one pan of dressing?... y'all might be going hungry this year.

Holledayz said...

ohhhh! Honey is the secret! Looks yummy!

Susie Q said...

Nothing is betterthan a good pot of soup and this looks wonderful! I think we will have to try it!!
Love,
Sue

Barbara said...

If you're looking to save a few calories, you can leave out the cream with no worries. It's just as good and not nearly as fattening!

Sandi @the WhistleStop Cafe said...

Holly~ you know all my secrets!
Susie~ I'm glad you stopped by, this one is worth the try.
Barbara~ you have convinced me... I'll save the cream for whipping!!

Donna-FFW said...

Oh that would be lovely on the Thanksgiving day menu!! And whats even better is that it can be made ahead of time.

Barbara said...

Donna, not only can you make it ahead of time, it freezes quite well. Freeze it without the cream, then you can add it once it's thawed, if you want.

Ive read recipes that suggest you toast the pumpkin seeds after you roast the pumpkin and use them for garnish. Personally I think a little crumbled bacon, some grated parmesan, or a swirl of olive oil are nice too!

Free cooking recipes said...

I love great soup recipes. I will definitely have to give this one a try - looks great!

Sam

Great chicken and rice recipe

Pearl Maple said...

Yumm, those parmesan toppings are just the perfect touch to a tasty dish. Happy Thanksgiving to you and the family.

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