West indian pumpkin soup
6 servings
Ingredients
| Quantity | Ingredient | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | tablespoon | Olive oil |
| 1 | Onion(s), chopped | |
| 2 | Stalks celery, chopped | |
| 1 | Carrot, chopped | |
| 3 | Garlic clove(s) finely chopped | |
| ½ | Chilies such as Scotch Bonnet seeds and stems removed finely chopped | |
| 5 | cups | Chicken stock |
| 1½ | pounds | Calabaza or butternut squash |
| Chopped chives or scallion greens peeled, seeded cut into 1-inch pieces (4 cups) | ||
| ¼ | cup | Parsley; chopped |
| 2 | Bay leaves | |
| 2 | Sprigs fresh thyme or | |
| 1 | teaspoon | Dried thyme |
| 1 | tablespoon | Brown sugar plus more to taste |
| ½ | cup | Sour cream plus |
| 3 | tablespoons | Sour cream for garnish |
| Salt and pepper | ||
| ¼ | teaspoon | Cayenne |
Directions
GARNISH
Heat oil in Dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat. Add onions, celery and carrots; cook until soft but not brown, 3-4 minutes. Add garlic and chilies and cook for 1 minute more. Stir in stock, bay leaves, thyme and sugar. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until the vegetables are very soft, 25-30 minutes. Discard bay leaves and thyme sprigs.
Puree soup in a blender or food processor, in batches if necessary, until very smooth. Add a little water if the soup is too thick..
The soup can be made ahead to this point and kept covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
Return soup to the pot and stir in « cup sour cream. Simmer soup for 3 minutes. Adjust seasonings, adding brown sugar, salt and pepper to taste.
To serve, ladle soup into bowls. GArnish each portion with « tbs dollop of sour cream, some chives or scallions and a dusting of red pepper. Serve at once.
Eating Well February 1995
Submitted By DIANE LAZARUS On 02-06-95