Roasted Pumpkin Soup

On a cool Fall evening, nothing tastes more delicious than Roasted Pumpkin Soup. My version is paired with more roasted veggies to enhance the flavor, nutrients and richness. Sprinkle roasted pumpkin seeds, and pair it with an aged Swiss grilled cheese.

By Rose Huxford

This was the first year we harvested pumpkins. We were so excited that we didn't want to waste any, so I made lots of pumpkin puree, and the one's that were still unripen I cut up and used for soups. Unripen pumpkin isn't sweet, so I don't recommend using it for baking, but use it for your savory dishes.

By Rose Huxford

Roasted Pumpkin Soup

Pre-heat oven: 425 degrees F

Yields: 8 cups

Bake-time: 35 minutes

Cooke-time: 20 minutes

Total-time: 55 minutes

Ingredients

• 3 1/2-4 cups (small-medium) pumpkin, diced, peeled and cleaned out

• 1 cup onion, rough chopped

• 3 cloves garlic, rough chopped

• 1 1/2-2 cups cauliflower, chopped

• 2 cups sweet potato, diced

• 1 small apple, diced (I kept the skin on)

• olive oil

• salt

• pepper

• 2 tsp garlic powder

• 1 tsp marjoram

• 1 tsp ground cumin

• 1 1/2 tsp curry powder

• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder

• 1 tsp parsley

• 1 quart vegetable stock

• 1/4 cup whole milk, or any non dairy milk or cream

By Rose Huxford

Directions

1. Pre-heat the oven to 425 degree F.

2. I used a small-medium size pumpkin and cut it into strips. I found this was easier to peel the skin off.

3. Dice the pumpkin, sweet potato and apple and place it on a large sheet pan. Then, rough chop the onion, garlic, and cauliflower and add it to the pan. Drizzles olive oil, just enough to coat all the veggies.

4. Sprinkle salt, pepper, garlic powder, marjoram, cumin, curry powder, turmeric and parsley. Use your hands to toss everything together until well coated.

5. Bake for about 35 minutes, or until the larger veggies are tender and golden brown.

6. Pre-heat olive oil in a large pot. Take your tender roasted veggies and add to your pot.

7. Add the 1 quart vegetable stock to the pot and bring it to a boil. Once it begins to boil, stir a couple of times, then cover the pot and allow it to simmer on low-medium heat for about 20 minutes. Test taste every so often and stir. Add necessary seasoning to your pot, every body has different taste buds, so accommodate to yours :).

8. Once the soup and vegetables have blended, use an immersion blender or blender to puree the veggies until it's creamy. The soup will be thick, so you will want to add your favorite cream, whole milk or nondairy creamer to the soup to lighten it up.

9. Top it off with roasted pumpkin seeds and enjoy!

By Rose Huxford