3 Recipes: Easy Pumpkin Soup / Halloween Pumpkin Soup / Thai Butternut Soup

During the Halloween season, you might be stuck with a huge amount of leftover pumpkin after carving your jack-o’-lanterns. Here are three easy pumpkin soup recipes: just perfect for when you get back from trick or treat.

You can easily make this ahead of time and just warm up when you’re ready to eat.

1) Easy Pumpkin Soup Recipe

Cooking Time: 30 mins

Course: Side dish, starter, lunch, dinner

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by Emily

Chef Secrets!

Roasting the pumpkin in the oven will give your soup a totally different taste and many people prefer this option. I prefer to cook the pumpkin on stove top with a little bit of added sugar or maple syrup. (Just a very small amount, for taste)

You can add fresh herbs according to your taste. Herbs that work well are: Sage, Ginger, Mint or Chives.

Spices like cumin, coriander and cinnamon also works well with pumpkin soup.

However I would add a little bit at a time and test it until you find the combination that works best for your taste buds.

My personal preference is ginger and cinnamon: Giving the soup a warm hearty winter feeling.

A budget friendly tip:

Pumpkin soup is actually a very versatile soup and you can easily add potatoes or carrots to stretch and make it more. (Obviously the taste would then be more towards a vegetable soup, but the option is there should you not have enough pumpkin in your pantry.)

2) Haloween Pumpkin Soup:

Ingredients:

Olive oil – Just enough to sauté the onion in
1 kg peeled and diced pumpkin
1 onion, finely chopped
1 leek, finely diced
1 garlic clove, crushed
1/2 tsp fine coriander
1 tsp fine cumin
1/2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1 large potato, peeled and diced
1L vegetable or chicken stock
1/2 cup (125ml) pouring cream

Make the soup in 5 Easy steps:

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over low heat, add the onion and leek and saute for about 2-3 minutes.
Add the garlic and spices and lightly simmer for a few more seconds.
Add the pumpkin, potato and stock and bring to a boil. Turn heat to low, cover, and simmer for a further 30 minutes.
Now you can blend to the desired consistency as you like it.
When done, return the soup to low heat, string continuously while adding the cream and season to taste.

Health benefits:

Here are some health facts according to Webmd.com:

“In addition to beta carotene, pumpkins offer vitamin C, vitamin E, iron, and folate — all of which strengthen your immune system. More pumpkin in your diet can help your immune cells work better to ward off germs and speed healing when you get a wound.”

“Pumpkin’s rich orange color is also a sign it’s packed with potassium. This is crucial for lowering blood pressure. Unsalted pumpkin seeds are also crammed with minerals and plant sterols that raise HDL cholesterol levels (the “good” kind) and help keep blood pressure numbers down, too.”

“More good news about pumpkins’ potassium power: Studies show that higher potassium levels can lower your risk of stroke, kidney stones, and type 2 diabetes. Another bonus: Potassium may also increase bone mineral density, boosting your bone health.”

3) Thai Butternut Soup

Ingredients for Thai Butternut Soup

1 onion chopped
3 garlic cloves minced
1 tsp curry powder
2 heaped cups of cooked pumpkin
2 cups chicken stock and a little bit of extra
1 can unsweetened coconut milk
Salt and Pepper to Taste

How to make the soup:

Fry the chopped onion slowly in about 1 tablespoon of pure butter.
Adding the garlic, sauté for another minute
Now add to this, the pumpkin, curry powder, coconut milk, and 2 cups of stock and blend until smooth.

A Few Tips:

Depending on the way you like your soup, you can add more stock to make the soup thinner.

Ginger goes well with this soup, adding only a small amount according to your taste and serve warm.

You might be interested in reading more about Halloween celebrations in New Orleans.

Halloween Celebrations are Huge in New Orleans

... and are considered as one of the best places to join in the fun. The official New Orleans Halloween parade has been famous since 2007.

Find out more