Sneakily delicious dishes that bring all the omnivores to the yard! Look for the cookbook in 2010!

Sunday, November 1, 2009

Pumpkin Peanut Thai Soup



I really love the idea of pumpkin soup. However, the more different pumpkin soup recipes I try, the more disappointed I become. They all feel like they are covering up the fresh delicately sweet pumpkin taste, rather than enhancing it.

I knew I wanted pumpkin soup for Halloween dinner, and I knew that now was the time to branch out and create my own recipe. And boy oh boy, did I. This soup was so delicious and creamy, and the pumpkin flavor really shone through. The hints of peanut and Thai curry played up the sweetness and richness. If you're looking for a complex soup that's at the same time deliciously simple, you've found your match.

Pumpkin Peanut Thai Soup
Serves 4

1 small to medium pie {or sugar} pumpkin
1 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion
1 cup coconut milk
2 cups vegetable broth
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1 tbsp Thai curry paste {I used green}, or to taste
salt & pepper, to taste

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Cut the pumpkin in half, remove seeds, and place cut sides down in a greased baking dish. Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours, until flesh of the pumpkin can be easily pierced. Allow to cool until the pumpkin halves can be comfortably handled.

2. Scoop the flesh of the pumpkin into a food processor and pulse until smooth. Set aside.

3. Heat the olive oil in a medium soup pot. Add the onion and sautee until golden, about 8 minutes.

4. Add the pumpkin puree, coconut milk, vegetable broth, peanut butter, and curry paste. Puree using an immersion blending to your desired consistency. Heat for 10 to 15 minutes to allow flavors to combine and all ingredients to heat uniformly.

5. Taste for seasonings, and add more curry paste, salt, or pepper if desired.

6. Serve with a dollop of vegan sour cream, some roasted salted peanuts, and a dash of paprika.

6 comments:

  1. This and the previous muffins, I think I just wanna come camp out at your house. I'd be like the weird person living in a tent inexplicably set up in the middle of your living room.

    I know I could just go cook these up myself, and I'll get around to that too, you bet, but my tent plan sounds infinitely more exciting.

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  2. Making this tomorrow.
    Any ideas on where to find the curry paste?

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  3. I get the curry paste at my local grocery store. It seems like every grocery store has a little "Asian" section. I just buy the green Thai curry paste from that section. If you have an Asian market in the area, you could check that, but I'd be willing to bet you could find it at your average grocery store. Hope you like it! Let me know how it turns out. :)

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  4. mmmm, nice recipe -- that looks fantastic! i will definitely try this when i track down the paste.

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  5. I am eating this right now! I changed only two small things, I used 1 1/2 cups coconut milk, since I like my soups really creamy, and I added only 1/2 tsp. of the curry paste, since I'm intolerant of stuff that's to spicy. I LOVE IT!
    nom nom nom.

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