By Dana Jacobi
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As piles of pumpkins destined to become jack-o-lanterns and other holiday decorations appear in local markets, I think back to the wonderful pumpkin soups and chunky stews I enjoyed the winter I lived in Paris.

Americans use pumpkins mostly for decoration, seldom eating them, except in pies and, more recently, in cheesecakes and muffins. But this is changing as more cooks realize that this bright member of the gourd family can have as much pleasing flavor as all the other hard-shelled winter squashes to which pumpkins are related: it's simply a matter of choosing the right kind of pumpkin for what you are going to cook.

For starters, forget about trying to recycle those jack-o-lanterns. The watery, stringy pulp you will get is not worth the time and work required. Instead, buy sweet-tasting diminutive, jack-be-littles or munchkins; a tan-skinned cheese pumpkin; or a dense-fleshed sugar pumpkin (the right kind to use when you want to make pumpkin pie from scratch).

Like the French, I like to scoop out a cheese pumpkin, pack it with layers of stale slices of crusty bread and shredded Gruyre cheese, pour in some milk, and roast the whole thing until the pumpkin is soft but not collapsing. To serve, just scoop out the filling and flesh -- the combination is scrumptious.

Roasting miniature pumpkins is as easy as baking an acorn squash. Just clean out the insides, brush each pumpkin all over with melted butter or oil, perhaps sprinkle the inside with brown sugar, and bake in a shallow pan with water in the bottom until the pumpkins are soft when pierced with a knife. For serving, the cooked pumpkins can be filled with steamed green beans or other cooked vegetables, or with your favorite cranberry relish, if you like.

Canned pumpkin is the easiest way of adding good flavor and the glowing color indicative of healthful beta carotene to dishes. For a velvety soup that takes just minutes to make, I cook it with a yam (actually a sweet potato) plus a few aromatic ingredients. Cubes of fresh apple, browned in a skillet, add the perfect contrast to this luscious, dairy-free soup.

PUMPKIN BISQUE

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon canola oil
  • 1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and coarsely chopped
  • 1 leek, white part only, finely chopped
  • 4 cups vegetable broth
  • 1 yam or sweet potato, peeled, halved lengthwise, and cut in 1/2-inch slices
  • 16-ounces fresh pureed pumpkin flesh OR one 16-ounce can pureed pumpkin
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 4 teaspoons minced chives, for garnish

Directions

  1. In a large, heavy saucepan, heat oil over medium-high heat. Saute the leek and chopped apple until the leek softens, about 4 minutes.
  2. Add the vegetable broth, yam, pureed pumpkin and thyme leaves. Bring the soup to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer until the yam and apple are soft when pierced with a knife, 20-25 minutes.
  3. Transfer the hot soup to a blender or food processor and puree. Pour it into 6 bowls. Garnish each bowl with a teaspoon of the chives, and serve.
  4. Each of the six servings contains 105 calories and 3 grams of fat.

Interested in more pumpkin recipes? Then click here for Pumpkin Recipes from our Recipe Archive!

Dana Jacobi is a culinary professional and writer whose food appeals to everyone interested in eating well - deliciously and for good health. She has written several cookbooks, including The Best of Clay Pot Cooking and The Joy of Soy. A James Beard Award Finalist (as The Natural Kitchen: SOY!) this book redefined cooking with soyfoods in dishes for everybody. This article appears courtesy of AICR.


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