Pumpkin Soup

• All the shops here in England are filled with pumpkins for Halloween, which is celebrated by many.
• In Poland it is the Christian feasts of All Saints & All Souls on November 1st & 2nd that are celebrated with many people trying to get home to their relatives graves to clean them up and put grave candles on them.
• As there are all these pumpkins – dynia -in Polish- I thought I would try out a pumpkin soup.
• This is a very tasty yet simple soup.
• I have added a couple of options.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 pumpkin – small to medium – around 500g of flesh.
• 1 large onion
• Butter for frying the onion
• 1½ litres of vegetable or chicken stock
• ¼ teaspoon of ground paprika
• Salt and pepper to taste
• *
• OPTION 1 – ½ a red pepper
• OPTION 2 – 1 red pepper
• OPTION 3 – roasted pumpkin seeds (not tested)

METHOD

• Peel the skin off the pumpkin.
• Cut the pumpkin into pieces – leaving the core.
• Cut the flesh into small chunks.
• Chop the onion into small pieces.
• Fry the onion until it is golden – even turning slightly brown.
• Add the pumpkin and the fried onion to the stock and heat to boiling.
• Turn down to simmer.
• Simmer until the pumpkin flesh is soft.
• Add the paprika.
• Use a stick blender to purée the soup.
• Bring back to boiling and serve straight away.
• *
• OPTION 1
• Chop up ½ a red pepper and blanch and simmer for a few minutes.
• Add some to each serving of soup.
• *
• OPTION 2
• Chop up  1 pepper and add it after you have puréed the soup.
• Simmer for around 10 minutes.
• *
• OPTION 3 – NOT TESTED
• Add some roasted pumpkin seeds to each serving.
• You can clean up and roast the pumpkin seeds from your own pumpkin.
• *
• Royal Doulton Carnation rimmed soup plate 
• Royal Doulton Burgundy rimmed soup plate 
• Johnson Snowhite bowl.