Here’s some trivia:
Is pumpkin a gourd?
Yes.
Is pumpkin a vegetable?
Yes
Is pumpkin a squash?
Starting to get the idea?
Pumpkin is also a harbinger of autumn, and the favorite of
Halloween ghouls and goblins.
But, Halloween’s kid stuff.
Want to go trick-or-treating when you’re graying and short of
breath? Throw in fear of arrest
and you'll know you need another way to celebrate.
Pumpkin season is eating-season and I’m not talking about
pumpkin pie, usually made with canned this and overly sweetened that. Let’s have some gourmet thoughts about
this most popular of the gourd-squash family. By the way, pumpkins aren’t always referred to as pumpkins,
even in the English-speaking world (and that includes parts of
California). In Australia, they’re
known as winter squash.
Pumpkins are also chock full of vitamins and minerals.
Biggest pumpkin producers in the world? China, India, Russia, U.S. and
Egypt. (http://www.top5ofanything.com/) In the U.S., which state
produces the most? Illinois.
But, let’s forget the trivia and bar bets for a moment and
get back to eating. As soon as you
stop looking at pumpkins as big orange jack-o-lanterns and start wrapping your
mind around pumpkins as delicious squash….you ready for this pseudo-psycho
speak???…. your paradigm will shift and you’re on your way to some
tongue-wagging goodness.
Pumpkin Soup
Serves 6
5 cups of cooked pumpkin (a five pound pumpkin ought to do
it)
3 1/2 Cups vegetable or chicken broth
2 Cups heavy cream, plus a half cup more for whipping
1/2 medium onion, minced
2 Tablespoons butter
Pumpkin oil
Pumpkin seeds, toasted
1) Cut out the stem of the
pumpkin, leaving a hole large enough to scrape out the seeds
2) Put the pumpkin in a 350ºF ª (180ºC) oven. Bake for one hour. Let cool.
3) Cut the cooked pumpkin into a few pieces. Scrape the
pumpkin flesh off the shell and discard the shell
4) Put the butter in a pan and add the onion. Careful to let the minced onion wilt,
not brown
5) Put broth, wilted onions, cream, and pumpkin flesh in a food
processor and blend well. If
it’s too thick, add a little more broth
6) Put the soup in a sauce pan and cook on medium/low until
it is well heated. Do not boil.
7) Serve the soup in individual bowls. Drizzle half a teaspoon of pumpkin oil
into each bowl of soup and use a spoon to give it a swirl.
8) Top each serving with a dollop of whipped cream and some
toasted pumpkin seeds
About toasting pumpkin seeds: Put the seeds in a pan, without oil or butter. Turn the heat to medium and watch the
seeds like a hawk after a mouse!
The seeds will go from raw to toasted in a hurry. Give 'em a stir. When you start to see them bulge and
pop, give them another quick stir or two.
Most will get a little brown, some will not. Careful not to let them blacken.
Sweetest soup you’ll ever eat, without even a speck of sugar
added. No salt either. By the way, it’s also one of the BEST
soups you’ll ever eat. Just
another reason, after football, snuggling under a blanket, leaves changing
colors, and weinfests, that I love
autumn.
