Pumpkin Soup

Pumpkins abound in the supermarkets these days. Yeah, I’m new around here, and sights like these surprise me.

So I went ahead and bought myself a little pumpkin, the kind called “Pie Pumpkin,” since I really am not sure if all of these gourds are actually edible or not. Then I asked my dear husband to cut it up, because really, cutting up a pumpkin is a lot of work. If you don’t believe me, just ask him.

My intention was to follow this recipe, and for the most part I did, with a few notable exceptions that actually led to a phenomenal result. First, halfway through, we called it quits on the pumpkin cutting ordeal, so our soup just had half a pumpkin rather than a whole one. Second, I didn’t drain out the water because it looked too yummy to discard. Third, instead of onion I used leeks (other recipes call for leeks, and I had gone out to buy some for this very meal). And fourth, I didn’t add cheese but rather a bit more butter at the end.

So here we have it. Sorry, no photos. It vanished.

But just think, there’s another half pumpkin in the fridge waiting to be used!

Ingredients:

• half a pumpkin
• 3 leeks (they weren’t too big) (onions will of course work, too)
• 2 potatoes (largish)
• olive oil
• butter
• milk
• salt
• water

Steps:

Have someone kind peel and chop up the pumpkin for you.

Heat up some oil in a large pan (I used my earthenware one) or pot, and saute the pumpkin, the sliced leeks, and the peeled and chopped potatoes.

Add a couple of tablespoons of butter and continue to saute until the leeks are soft.

Salt plentifully and cover with water. Simmer for about 15 minutes on low heat, stirring occasionally.

Add a bit more water (about a cup?), raise the heat, and boil until the potatoes are cooked through.

Add some milk (half a cup, maybe?) and some butter (1 tablespoon?) and blend with an immersion blender, trying not to get splattered with hot liquid. If you don’t have a handheld immersion blender, you can use any other blender or a potato masher, or leave it as is.

Serve with bread, and as this will not be quite enough food for your family if it is anything like mine, prepare some chocolate-dipped banana chunks for dessert so that they will leave the table happy and satisfied and thanking you for nourishing them in such a delightful way.