Curried Pumpkin Soup with Maple and Ginger Caramelized Onions

There’s something about seeing leaves fall from the trees that makes me crave soup. Could also be the chill in the air that always accompanies the falling red and orange and yellow leaves. As pretty as this time of year is, I am definitely a summer kind of person. I get chilled quickly but can’t stand being bundled under sweaters and socks. I spend most of the autumn and winter battling between chilly toes and socks that make my feet feel trapped. It’s an endless battle that neither side wins for long. But that’s enough about my peculiar (I think?) obsession with having my feet bare.

This soup is warm and comforting; they’re cliche words, I know, but true. The spicy curry is mellowed by the sweet pumpkin and the apple. Although this soup is great on its own, the real star of this show is the Maple and Ginger Caramelized Onion. Please don’t leave the onions out of the soup. Like a lover or a best friend, it wouldn’t be the same without them.

This is the kind of soup that is easy enough to make on a chilly weekday evening, but will hold its own at the start of a dinner party. Last year at Thanksgiving I carved out fourteen mini pumpkins and ladled the soup into them. The presentation was well worth the work. Today I sit at my new (hooray it finally arrived!) dinning table, surrounded by paperwork, eating the same soup. The presentation isn’t so pretty but the soup is just as satisfying. Well it’s almost as satisfying; I love presentation and if I had a mini pumpkin on hand I’d probably hollow it out and ladle my soup into it. Just for fun.

In the past I’ve made this soup with almond milk instead of regular milk and it has turned out great. This time when I pulled the milk from the fridge it had turned lumpy and sour. Needless to say that milk went down the drain and 3 cups of water went into the soup. It still turned out great so I will probably leave the milk out next time to make this already healthy recipe a little more healthy.

Curried Pumpkin Soup with Maple and Ginger Caramelized Onions

 

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Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

15 mins

Total time

35 mins

 

Author: The Endless Meal

Recipe type: Soup

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 2 large onions, one thinly sliced and the other finely minced
• ¼ cup maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
• 1½ teaspoon curry powder
• ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, or more to taste
• 1 large apple, peeled, cored and diced
• 15-ounce can unsweetened, unseasoned pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie mix!)
• Juice of 1 large orange
• 3 cups milk or water
• Sea salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• Optional: croutons

Instructions

1. In a large frying pan heat 2 tbsp of oil over medium heat. Add sliced onions and cook till very soft and lightly browned, about 5 or 6 minutes
2. Add the maple syrup and ginger, reduce heat to medium low and continue cooking, stirring often, until the onions are thick and caramelized, about 10 minutes. Set aside
3. Meanwhile, in a large soup pot over medium high heat, combine another couple of tbsp of oil and the remaining finely minced onion, the curry powder, red pepper flakes and the apple. Sauté until the onion is tender, about 5 minutes
4. Mix in the pumpkin and orange juice, then transfer everything in the soup pot to a food processor or blender. Add the milk or water and puree until smooth
5. Return the soup to the pot and bring to a gentle simmer. Season with salt and pepper
6. To serve, ladle the soup into bowls (or mini pumpkins) and top with caramelized onions and croutons. Enjoy!

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Adapted from a recipe at Food.com