Pumpkin Soup

I've wondered for years what good is a pumpkin for other than carving? Are they actually edible? I noticed while Andrew carved his pumpkin this year that he kept popping pieces into his mouth like M&M's. He loved it! After carving a scary face into what is essentially a piece of fruit (they have seeds, making them part of the fruit family) he cut up a chunk and put the pieces into the steamer and then enjoyed some more of the "unedible" food.

I've used banana and butternut squash for years as a soup. So, I thought, why not pumpkin. Fresh pumpkin, not that canned stuff that resembles Gerbers. If you are really feeling Martha Stewartish, scoop out your pumpkin with care so you can pour your finished product back into the pumpkin for a beautiful center piece. I plan on doing this for Thanksgiving. I'll take a photo and post when accomplished. I saved the seeds and roasted them in the oven to use as a garnish. Go get your pumpkin and lets make some soup!

Ingredients:
About 4 lbs. of Pumpkin (or squash)

1 lg. Onion
2 TBS minced garlic
1 Yellow or Red Pepper
8 Cups of Water w/ 8 cubes of beef or chicken bullion cubes

Any seasonings you like. I used salt, pepper, basil, and nutmeg.

Directions:

Take pumpkin and spread it out onto a baking

pan. Add your onion and peppers that have been cut up into pieces. Salt and pepper to taste. Place in 400 degree oven and roast for about 20 min.

Remove from oven and let cool about 5 min. Place in blender, a few pieces at a time, with a little bit of water. Dump pureed pumpkin into the boullion water and turn on low to simmer for an hour or so to blend flavors. With your last mixture of pumpkin add the minced garlic and cilantro and nutmeg to blend. Add other seasonings as desired. While the soup is simmering, you can roast the pumpkin seeds. Rinse your seeds well and spread onto a baking pan to dry. I usually get out my blow dryer and set it too low to speed up the process. Spray with butter and, using a basting brush, spread on Worcestershire sauce, sprinkle with a lot of salt and then place in oven that is set at 250 degrees. They take about 30-40 min. Yummy!