Alright, so I decided to whip up some pumpkin tomato soup today. It’s one of those things that just feels right, especially when you’ve got a nice pumpkin sitting around and some good tomatoes. I don’t really follow a strict recipe for this, it’s more of a “go by feel” kind of thing, but I’ll walk you through what I did this time around.
Starting with the Basics
First off, I grabbed my pumpkin. It wasn’t one of those huge ones you carve, but a smaller, sweeter type, probably a couple of pounds. Then, the tomatoes – I had about six medium-sized ripe ones. You definitely want them ripe; it makes all the difference for the flavor. And, of course, an onion and a few cloves of garlic. You can’t really start a good soup without those, in my opinion.
The Chopping Part
This is where I spent a bit of time. I cut the pumpkin in half, scooped out all the seeds. Sometimes I roast them, but not today. Then I peeled it – which can be a bit of a pain, honestly – and chopped it into rough chunks. They don’t need to be perfect since it all gets blended later.
For the tomatoes, I just gave them a quick wash and a rough chop. The onion got diced, and I minced the garlic. I always mince the garlic for soups; I feel like you get more flavor out of it that way compared to just slicing.
Getting it Cooking
I got out my big, heavy-bottomed pot. I always use that one for soups. I put in a splash of olive oil and let it heat up a bit, then threw in the diced onion. I let that soften up for a good five minutes, stirring it so it wouldn’t catch.
Next, in went the minced garlic for just about a minute – you have to be careful not to burn garlic, it turns bitter real quick. Then, I added the pumpkin chunks and the chopped tomatoes to the pot. I gave it all a good stir and let those cook together for about ten minutes. I like to let them sweat a bit and get friendly before adding the liquid. The kitchen started smelling pretty good at this point.
After that, I poured in vegetable broth. Enough to just cover all the vegetables. Some people use chicken broth, which is fine, but I usually lean towards veggie for this particular soup. I added a bit of salt and black pepper too. Not too much yet, because you can always add more later, but you can’t take it out.
Simmering and Blending
Once the broth was in, I brought the whole thing up to a gentle boil, then turned the heat down low, put the lid on sort of crooked, and just let it simmer away. It probably simmered for a good 25 to 30 minutes. You just want to cook it until the pumpkin is really, really tender – you know, when a fork goes in with no trouble at all.
When everything was nice and soft, it was time to blend. I used my immersion blender. Honestly, it’s one of my favorite kitchen tools. So much easier than trying to pour hot soup into a regular blender in batches. I just stuck it right in the pot and whizzed it all up until it was smooth. If you like a bit more texture, you could blend it less, but I was going for smooth today.
The Final Touches
After blending, I gave it a taste. This is the important part! It definitely needed a little something. I added a tiny pinch of nutmeg – I find it goes really well with pumpkin – and a little more salt. Then, for a bit of richness, I stirred in a small splash of heavy cream. Not a lot, just enough to make it a bit more velvety. You could leave it out if you want, or use a non-dairy alternative, I suppose.
And that was pretty much it. I ladled it into bowls. The color was fantastic, a really nice deep orange. It was thick, creamy, and just full of flavor. A really satisfying soup, and it didn’t take all day to make either. Perfect for a chilly evening, or really, anytime you want something comforting.
