Sunday, October 31, 2010

I cooked: Homemade pumpkin and sweetcorn soup

Happy Halloween, dear readers!


Do you know why pumpkins are carved every year during Halloween? This practice originated in Ireland whereby on "All Hallow's Eve" a pumpkin was carved and left on the doorstep to ward off evil spirits. Traditionally a face was carved on a swede or turnip and often lit for display but pumpkins are now used as they are more readily available and easier to carve.


Jack-o'-lantern with roasted pumpkin seeds


Did you celebrate Haloween with a pumpkin this year? Struggling for an idea on what to do with your leftover pumpkin? Why not try this recipe for homemade pumpkin and sweetcorn soup; this is a great vegetarian soup. The soup has a wonderfully smooth and creamy texture and the addition of sweetcorn provides some crunch to the soup. It is a hearty and delicious recipe, and will make good comfort food in the cold winter climates.


Even the pumpkin seeds do not go to waste. Roasted pumpkin seeds have a lovely nutty flavour and are great as a snack besides having a multitude of health benefits.



Homemade pumpkin and sweetcorn soup
Preparation time: 20-25 minutes
Cooking time: 40-45 minutes
Serves 4


Ingredients
1 kg pumpkin (You can also use butternut squash)
100g frozen sweetcorn, defrosted
25g butter
1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 cinnamon stick (kayu manis)
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg (buah pala)
275ml milk
725ml vegetable stock (You can also use chicken stock for a non-vegetarian version)
Freshly ground salt and pepper

For the roasted pumpkin seeds
Seeds from the pumpkin
1 tbsp olive oil
Freshly ground salt


1. Using a sharp knife, peel the pumpkin and deseed it with a spoon. Keep the pumpkin seeds aside for later use. Then, cut the pumpkin into 1 in (2.5cm) chunks.

2. In a large non-stick pot over a low heat, melt the butter and add the onions. Cook the onions for 8-10 minutes, until they are softened and golden brown.

3. Add the chopped pumpkin, along with the sweetcorn, cinnamon and nutmeg and season to taste with salt and pepper. Put the lid on and allow the pumpkin chunks to sweat gently and release their juices. This should take about 10 minutes.

4. Pour in the milk and stock and gently simmer for 20-30 minutes. Put the lid on but leave a little gap (so it's slightly ajar). Stir ocassionally.

5. For the roasted pumpkin seeds, first separate the seeds from the pulp and strings and rinse them under cold water. Pat them dry with a cloth and place in a dry bowl. Add the olive oil and salt and stir to coat. Place the pumpkin seeds on a single layer on a baking sheet and roast for 15-20 minutes in a preheated oven (160°C). Do keep an eye after 10 minutes as you just want to lightly roast them as overroasting destroys some of their nutritive value.

6. The soup is now ready to be served. However, if you prefer to have no bits in your soup at all, then pour the soup into a blender or food processor and blend it to a puree. Remember to remove the cinnamon stick beforehand.

7. Serve the soup in warm bowls with pumpkin seeds sprinkled over.


Enjoy!

Good comfort food



Note: This recipe was adapted from Delia Smith and Valentine Warner's pumpkin soup recipes.

3 comments:

  1. yum! i have a pumpkin still on the vine in my garden so this will be handy. thnx:)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Mmm ~ I'm a pumpkin lover *heart* not bad for a light lunch. But it is quite time consuming eh. hmm....

    ReplyDelete
  3. terri: I'm thinking about planting some pumpkins in our garden too. Then I can try more pumpkin recipes :)

    zoe: It's actually very simple to make, the most time consuming part is to peel the skin off the pumpkin and chop it up. After that you can just leave it to simmer in the pot. Try during the weekend when you have a bit more time.

    ReplyDelete

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