Our Veggie Kitchen

I've been on a dead since the year began, it seems. Lately, I either come home with a stack of work, or I collapse on the couch and try to recharge. My creativity has taken a turn toward comfort food, and I've been obsessed with soup; the ultimate too busy for a meal, ladle in front of the TV, or just fight off a winter chill comfort food.

This soup started off as a throw-things-into-a-pot batch, but the aroma of the roasting pumpkin told me that I needed write it down. It ended up being a blending of flavor that was slightly warm, had just a hint of lime and a beautiful color that complemented its pumkiny goodness.



Southwest Roasted Pumpkin Soup
3 tbs vegetable oil
6 cups diced pumpkin (or winter squash)
1 medium onion ,chopped
8 cloves garlic, chopped
1 dried chipotle pepper, seeded & torn
4 cups water
15 oz can white kidney beans
4 oz jar pimentos
1/4 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 lime, juiced

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a glass casserole, toss together the pumpkin, onion, garlic and chipotle pepper with the vegetable oil. Bake uncovered until the pumpkin is tender, about half an hour. Remove from the oven and cool for a few minutes.

Combine with the remaining ingredients (except the lime) and blend, in batches, until completely smooth. I blend in batches of 2-3 cups. Just make sure you don't overload your blender. Pour the blended soup into a stock pot and bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Stir in the lime juice and remove from heat.

5 Servings: 300 cal (10g fat, 49g carbs, 10g protein)