April Meal: Pumpkin Soup

Wait... What day is it again? MAY?! When did May happen?!
April started out and stayed for the most part very warm and mild; definitely not soup weather...
We did manage to snag one cool day which inspired me to get around to the April Meal.
And hear me well, I beg*. After making this soup, I'm sorry I put it off for as long as I did!





This recipe is -fabulously- easy. Not very many ingredients (although Chestnuts can be hard to find; I wasn't able to come across any fresh ones, but did find some canned.)
Soups are also a great way of using up some of your older, sadder looking veggies.

In fact the only hard part was the chopping...




And the peeling...



Everything after that happens in the magic pot!
Throw everything into the pot except for the nutmeg. Don't forget those fresh herbs!



All herbs came from my garden; parsley, sage, thyme and oregano.
Bring up to a simmer and just let those things cook away until everything is tender.

Now you need to blend everything together; which can be done with lots of awkward trips to the Cuisinart blender ... OR! You can grab one of these babies:



I love this hand-held blender with all my heart.



Blend baby blend!
Now, I have to admit that I was very disappointed at this stage and how thin the soup was; I like my pumpkin soups to be much thicker then it was, so I decided to throw the rest of the chestnuts from the can which thickened it up nicely.

After this all that's left is to stir in the nutmeg and slice up some bread to serve with your soup.



And then ladle it into a pretty bowl and decorate with your favourites! Mine happens to be a dollop of Greek yogurt and some Parmesan cheese!


(Apologies for the poor photo; it gets dark so early here now!)

Recipe!

Golden Pumpkin Soup with Chestnuts

Ingredients:
8 cups rich chicken stock
approx 750g deep yellow pumpkin, peeled and cubed
3 brown onions, peeled and chopped
2 celery stalks (with leaves), sliced
2 tablespoons mixed fresh herbs (such as thyme, sage, oregano, parsley)
3/4 cup chestnuts, peeled and diced
Salt and Pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
light cream, yoghurt, chopped chives and/or Parmesan cheese for garnish!

Combine stock, pumpkin, onions, celery, herbs and chestnuts in a large saucepan. Cover and simmer until all vegetables are tender. Blend liquid and vegetables together until silky smooth.

Add salt, pepper and nutmeg. Reheat for a couple of minutes.

Ladle into serving bowls and garnish however you like your pumpkin soups best!
ENJOY!


* I've been reading far too much Dark Tower...