Pumpkin Soup

Last October in our cooking group, we each decided to make a different kind of soup. I love pumpkin soup but have never made it myself so I took on the challenge!!  I wanted to make it completely from scratch so that meant cooking my own pumpkin puree….yikes! Though that was a terrifying concept, it couldn’t have been easier and boy did it make a difference in taste! My soup turned out so delicious. I’m convinced it’s because of the fresh pumpkin. Try it and tell me what you think.

Begin with a pie pumpkin, about 3-4 pounds.

Cut in half and scoop out the “guts,” separating the seeds. Remove the stem from the top half of pumpkin. Place the halves on a cookie sheet, brush with olive oil and cover with foil. Cook in a 350º oven for about an hour (until pumpkin is soft and you can easily pierce it with a knife).

While the pumpkin is cooking, clean the seeds. I put damp seeds on a cookie sheet and immediately sprirnkled with coarse sea salt. Roast at 400º for a few minutes (until crunchy). Set aside.

Once the pumpkin halves have cooled, scoop out the flesh and put in a bowl. You should have about 3 cups of pumpkin. Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large pot. Add the shallots, garlic, thyme, salt and pepper. Saute until soft–about 5 minutes.

Stir in the sherry and cook down by half. Add the stock and pumpkin puree, bringing mixture to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Remove pot from heat. Using a hand immersion blender, mix the soup until well blended (be carful not to splatter or you may burn yourself!). Slowly stir in the heavy cream. Sprinkle the soup with nutmeg and stir to blend.

Ladle into soup bowls and top with those yummy pumpkin seeds you just roasted!

Yummmmmm……

Ingredients:

1 pie pumpkin, 3-4 pounds
2 tablespoons olive oil
2-3 shallots, diced
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons good quality coarse sea salt
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 teaspoons fresh thyme, minced
½ cup dry sherry
4 cups broth (vegetable or chicken)
¼ cup heavy cream
1 tsp ground nutmeg

Serves six

Tips for Success

Pick a pie pumpkin, sometimes called a sugar pumpkin, and not the big carving kind you set on the porch. Carving pumpkins are stringy and watery, while a small pie pumpkin has sweet, dense flesh that purees beautifully. Look for one that feels heavy for its size with no soft spots.

Don’t rush the roasting. The pumpkin is ready when a knife slides in with no resistance at all. If it still feels firm, give it another 10 or 15 minutes. Undercooked pumpkin makes a grainy soup no matter how long you blend it.

Keep the heat low once the cream goes in. Stir it in slowly off the heat and the soup stays silky and smooth.

Ingredient Swaps and Variations

• No sherry? Use a dry white wine, or simply skip it and add a splash more broth with a squeeze of lemon at the end.
• Use vegetable broth to keep it vegetarian, which is how I usually make it.
• Swap the shallots for half a sweet onion if that is what you have on hand.
• For a lighter soup, use half and half instead of heavy cream.
• Butternut squash works in place of the pumpkin if you can’t find a pie pumpkin. Roast it the same way.

Make Ahead and Storage

You can roast the pumpkin up to 3 days ahead and keep the puree covered in the fridge. That turns this into a weeknight soup! Leftover soup keeps in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. If you want to freeze it, freeze the soup before you add the cream, then stir the cream in after reheating. It will keep in the freezer for about 3 months. Store the roasted seeds separately in a jar at room temperature so they stay crunchy.

Reheat gently in a pot over medium low heat, stirring often, until it is steaming hot. Add a splash of broth if it has thickened up in the fridge.

How to Serve It

This soup is lovely with a crusty loaf of bread and a simple green salad. It is also fun served in mugs, which feels so cozy on a chilly October night. A little swirl of extra cream on top looks pretty too.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use canned pumpkin instead?

You can use about 3 cups of plain canned pumpkin puree, not pie filling. The soup will still be tasty, but fresh roasted pumpkin gives it a sweeter, deeper flavor that I really think is worth the effort.

I don’t have an immersion blender. What now?

Let the soup cool a bit, then blend it in batches in a regular blender, filling it no more than halfway. Hold the lid down with a towel and start on low so the hot soup doesn’t splash.

Mandy

Pumpkin Soup

A creamy from scratch pumpkin soup made with roasted pie pumpkin, shallots, thyme and a splash of sherry, topped with crunchy roasted pumpkin seeds.

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr 20 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 40 minutes mins

Servings: 6 servings

Course: Soup

Cuisine: American

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 1 pie pumpkin 3 to 4 pounds
• 2 tablespoons olive oil plus more for brushing the pumpkin
• 2 to 3 shallots diced
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 teaspoons good quality coarse sea salt plus more for the seeds
• 2 cloves garlic crushed
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme minced
• 1/2 cup dry sherry
• 4 cups broth vegetable or chicken
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1 tsp ground nutmeg

Method

 

1. Cut the pumpkin in half and scoop out the insides, separating and saving the seeds. Remove the stem.
2. Place the halves on a cookie sheet, brush with olive oil and cover with foil. Roast at 350 degrees F for about 1 hour, until soft enough to pierce easily with a knife.
3. While the pumpkin roasts, clean the seeds. Spread the damp seeds on a cookie sheet and sprinkle right away with coarse sea salt. Roast at 400 degrees F for a few minutes until crunchy. Set aside.
4. Once the pumpkin has cooled, scoop out the flesh into a bowl. You should have about 3 cups.
5. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large pot. Add the shallots, garlic, thyme, salt and pepper and saute until soft, about 5 minutes.
6. Stir in the sherry and cook until reduced by half.
7. Add the broth and pumpkin puree and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
8. Remove the pot from the heat and blend with an immersion blender until smooth, taking care not to splatter.
9. Slowly stir in the heavy cream, then sprinkle with nutmeg and stir to blend.
10. Ladle into bowls and top with the roasted pumpkin seeds.

Notes

Roast the pumpkin up to 3 days ahead to make this a quick weeknight soup. Freeze without the cream and add it after reheating.