Pumpkin Soup

To add to our seasonal pumpkin theme, John made this Pumpkin Soup last week. He chose to make it without the relish, and it ended up being comforting to have on a cool Chicago evening.

Pumpkin Soup

Ingredients

1 Tablespoon olive oil
2 Tablespoons butter
1 bay leaf
2 ribs celery, finely chopped
1 medium onion, finely chopped
salt and pepper
3 Tablespoons flour
2 teaspoons thyme
2 teaspoons hot sauce (such as Frank's)
6 cups chicken stock
1 (28 oz) can pumpkin
2 cups heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

Directions

Heat soup pot over medium heat. Add oil and butter until melted. Add bay, celery and onion and season with salt and pepper. Cook until tender, about 6-7 minutes.

Add flour, thyme and hot sauce and cook for 1 minute. Whisk in the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Whisk in pumpkin, one spoonful at a time. Simmer for 10 minutes, until thickened. Add cream and nutmeg and stir to combine.

Amanda's Analysis:

This soup was delicious and perfect for a cool fall dinner. It had a nice rich flavor that wasn't too overwhelmed by pumpkin. I would like to try it with the relish to see if it adds a little kick. But this soup is very tasty as is, and I would love to eat it again! I give this soup 7 spoons!

John's Jibba-Jabba:
I learned a valuable lesson in making this soup. There is a big difference between fresh and dried bay leaves. Fresh can be incorporated into the soup, while dry bay leaves should be removed before consumption. I did not know this and thought our immersion blender would take care of all the bits. It seemed fine until I got a bit of stem in a bite of my soup. Not a very pleasant thing. Everything else about this soup was very pleasant, it gets 6 spoons.