Fall or not, everyone loves this soup at home. Fresh seasonal pumpkin is always my first choice, but when convenience and shortcuts takes priority, you can use canned pumpkin as well. I will share a few tips to get the best out of canned pumpkin. I have used carrots, that gives body to the soup. Onion and garlic as aromatics adds just the right amount of savouriness.
Pumpkin: The hero of the soup. Try to use a ripe, good-quality Pumpkin. Peel and roughly chop the pumpkin. Onion and Garlic: These are the only aromatics we use in this recipe. Carrot: Carrot gives body and texture to the soup. Don’t worry you are not going to taste carrot, it blends well with Pumpkin. Butter: Sauteing anything in butter only makes it better. I wouldn’t recommend substituting butter with oil unless you have any dietary restrictions. Fresh Herb: I usually throw in any fresh herb that I have on hand. Thyme, parsley, Rosemary anything would work here.
Use a heavy bottom pot or a dutch oven. Saute Onion and garlic in butter until aromatic. Then add pumpkin and carrot. Stir fry on medium-high heat once to coat the veggies with the fat. Continue cooking on medium-high heat and stir it every 2 minutes to prevent it from burning at the bottom( thus a heavy bottom pot/ dutch oven). After 6-7 minutes of stirfrying on high heat, you should see small brown spots on the pumpkin. At this stage pumpkin would also become tender and almost cooked. Once all the veggies are cooked, use an immersion blender and blend it until smooth. (don’t forget to take out the bay leaf before blending) Stir in the cream(if using) and take off the flame.
Can we make it vegan?
Butter and cream adds richness to the soup, however you can substitute them and make it vegan. Use only oil instead of butter. Coconut milk works well with rest of the flavors.
Want to make soup but with canned pumpkin puree?
Canned pumpkin is bland on its own. But It makes prep work a whole lot easier. Look for brands, that has 100% pumpkin puree without any flavouring or additives. After sauteeing onion and garlic. Saute carrot on high heat until its slightly caramelized. Then add pumpkin puree and saute on medium heat until it has thicken further and brown a little bit. Keep scraping the bottom of the pan while reducing the puree. Then add stock, seasoning and let the mixture cook for 5-6 minutes. Blend it smooth.
Adding toppings to the soup
While serving, add a swril of cream on top and freshly cracked pepper. Some chopped parsley or micro greens on top. Toasted pumpkin seed gives a nice crunch. A good drizzle of chilli oil will add a kick to the soup. Enjoy the soup with some crusty bread or this easy no-knead focaccia. My little one loves it with cheesy garlic bread. To freezing – if you are planning to freeze and make it in bulk, then I would suggest skip adding the cream. Portion it into 1-2 servings and freeze it up to 3 months. To reheat, thaw it overnight and then warm in the microwave. Add a swril of cream on top and your favorite toppings.
