So, I need to tell you a few things about this recipe:
1. I love curry. a lot. If some brilliant cologne manufacturer were to create a man’s cologne with hints of curry, I would buy it by the caseload, regardless of cost and force Steve to wear it every day. Then I’d follow him around inhaling the scent. It would probably be pretty embarrassing for Steve, particularly since he’s not overly fond of curry.
2.Do you see those adorable little pumpkins at the top of the picture? My sister crocheted those for me – there’s a bigger one and a brown one, too, that I’m sure will make an appearance here before the end of pumpkin season. Yes, she is amazing. Yes, I am spoiled. Yes, I love her and yes, the best gift my mother ever gave me was my little sister. I can only hope that one day Gracie feels that way about Abigail. Let’s just say it’s not happening right now…
3. I made this pot of soup on our grill. Not because I’m some kind of outdoor cooking aficionado (look for my show Pumpkin Cooking In The Great Outdoors coming to you on the The Food Network from an alternate universe!), but because our stovetop went haywire last week. One of the eyes stays on continuously and just gets hotter and hotter and hotter. Like, if we left it on, I think it might spontaneously combust. Thankfully, the oven still works, but we’re turning the breaker on only when we want to use the oven. Yes, you might be a redneck if…..Yes, a trip to Lowe’s is in my near future. I love cooking, but a new oven was not exactly what I waned for Christmas. Oh well, I’m thankful we have that side burner on the grill – it’s not the easiest way to make soup or boil water with the acorns falling down all around me and trying to juggle a pot, a spoon, and a flashlight, but hey, whoever said cooking was easy!
4. This recipe comes from my friend Jill, who is a phenomenal cook. Everything that I have ever tasted that she made was delicious. She brought this soup to our supper club about a year ago. And, I may or may not have made a complete fool over myself about how good it was. She ended up sending the leftovers home with me, probably just to get me to be quiet and stop stalking her like some kind of crazed, obsessed curried pumpkin soup groupie. I had it for breakfast the next morning and lunch and dinner and then I started hounding Jill for the recipe – do you think 252 emails is excessive? She was kind enough to send it to me and then promptly changed her email address and phone number. Just kidding!
Okay, enough with the chit chat. Here’s the recipe!
Curried Pumpkin Soup (adapted slightly from my friend Jill)
2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2-3 tablespoons curry powder ***
32 oz. of vegetable broth (one of those big boxes with the spout on it is perfect!)
1 big (29 ounce) can or 2 small(14 ounce) cans pumpkin
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream (you can use half-and-half, of whole milk, or even 2% depending on how creamy you’d like it to be – I’ve tried it all four ways)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon white sugar
salt and pepper to taste
1 small onion, diced
croutons and sour cream for topping
Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions and swirl them around for just a couple of minutes. Add in the flour and curry powder. Stir until smooth. Cook, stirring, until mixture starts to bubble or you pass out from the amazing aroma. Gradually whisk in the broth. Cook until it starts to thicken, stirring often. Stir in pumpkin and cream. Season with sugar, soy sauce, salt, and pepper. Increase the heat and bring the entire thing to a boil. As soon as you see those boiling bubbles start to appear, remove from the heat. Garnish with croutons and sour cream.
**** Note about curry powder:
Curry comes in many variants, but pretty much anywhere you can buy yellow curry (which is labeled as Curry Powder) or red curry (which is labeled as Red Curry Powder). Red Curry is much hotter. The first time I made this recipe, I used red curry because that was what I had in my pantry. I thought it was delicious – Steve thought I was trying to kill him. I think a mixture of red and yellow (I usually use 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons of yellow curry and 1/2 to 1 of red) is perfect, but even that much kick may be too much for some.
Enjoy!