Between October and January, there are many holidays where pumpkins serve as decorations, flavorings, recipes, and activities. Fortunately, recipes using pumpkin are plentiful, delicious, and healthy! Pumpkin is surprisingly high in fiber, and that beautiful orange color makes it easy to identify as a wonderful source of beta carotene.
There is definitely not a shortage of pumpkin-based recipes, so it can be a little overwhelming to wade through them all. If you are a great chef, or at least a confident cook, recipes using fresh pumpkin can be very fun and satisfying. But when you need a quick fix, prefer an easy recipe, or are new to the kitchen, it is usually easier, with better results, to use canned pumpkin.
For example:
– pumpkin chili (http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/22000047/pumpkin_chili_healthy_fall_recipes.html?cat=5)
– pumpkin bread (http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/937723/pumpkin_bread.html?cat=22)
– pumpkin pie (http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/2201747/nobake_pumpkin_pie.html?cat=22)
– And, of course, pumpkin soup, recipe below
You can usually find canned pumpkin year-round in the grocery store, so you can also make these of recipes year round. For the best bet, look for canned pumpkin with the other canned pie fillings, and sometimes with the canned vegetables.
This delicious, savory recipe is very easy to make, and when served with cinnamon croutons on top, nothing could be better.
Soup
1 cup onion, chopped fine
2 tbsp butter, melted
2 cans chicken broth
1 16 oz can pumpkin
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground ginger
1/8 tsp white pepper (Tip: If you don’t have white pepper, you can use black pepper. The white paper just seasons without adding the black specs of pepper.)
1 cup whipping cream
Sauté onion in butter until tender, about 3 minutes. Add 1 can chicken broth. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 15 minutes.
Pour broth mixture into blender and process until smooth. (Note: My family likes the texture of the onion, so I don’t process fully. But if you like it really smooth, be sure you process it very well, and/or strain it.)
Return mixture to saucepan. Add remaining broth, pumpkin, and spices. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in cream and cook until thoroughly heated, but DO NOT BOIL.
Croutons
3 tbsp butter, softened
1 tbsp brown sugar
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
4 slices thick cut bread
Mix butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Spread over 1 side of bread. Bake at 400 degrees for 8 – 10 minutes until toasted.
Tip: At our house, we usually double the crouton recipe!
Healthy Tips
I always recommend following a recipe as close as possible the first time so you know how it should turn out. But after that, change things up and make substitutions to fit your healthy lifestyle. For example:
– Use low-sodium chicken broth. You probably won’t notice the difference.
– Use about half the butter, and/or mix half-and-half with olive oil. The flavor won’t be as rich, but you’ll cut out calories and extra fat.
– Experiment with Half-and-Half instead of whipping cream. Or, using some proportion of heavy whipping cream and half-and-half. Many places you can even find fat-free or low-fat half-and-half. Same as with the butter, your soup won’t be quite as rich tasting.
– When making the croutons, use spray butter and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Also, use thinner or light bread. The texture of the crouton won’t quit be the same.
