Spicy Ginger Pumpkin Soup

About a year ago, I visited a friend who served this amazing soup. He was kind enough to send me the recipe! This is great recipe because you can play around with the type of liquids and winter squash you use. I've made it with pumpkin and butternut squash - both are delicious. 

Warning - the recipe is SPICY! The ginger sneaks up on you. If you are sensitive to spice, dial it down to your needs.

Your shopping list

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 4 cups uncooked peeled pumpkin, cubed
• 2 Tbsp anchovy paste
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1/4 freshly grated ginger
• 3/4 Tbsp red chili flakes
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup 5% cream
• 1 litre low sodium chicken broth
• salt, to taste

Garnish

• 1 tsp cayenne
• 1/2 cup raw shelled sunflower seeds

What to do with it

Perfect soup for a fall day

1. Heat the oil in a stock pot over medium-high heat
2. Add pumpkin and cook, stirring often, until lightly golden, about 10 minutes
3. Mix in anchovy paste, onion, and garlic and cook for an additional 5 minutes
4. Stir in red chili flakes, ginger, and brown sugar and cook for 2 minutes
5. Add liquids, along with a cup of water, and bring to a boil
6. Lower heat and simmer, uncovered for 45 minutes
7. Using an immersion blender, blend soup until smooth
8. Add salt and simmer for an additional 20 minutes
9. Meanwhile, heat a dry pan over medium heat
10. Add seeds and toast, until just smoking
11. Add cayenne and toss seeds for about a minute
12. Transfer sunflower seeds to a plate to cool
13. Serve soup with toasted seeds

Soups on!

My bestie Ashley bought me an amazing cookbook for my birthday - nothing but soup. I was really excited to find a recipe to make and am so happy that I chose this one. With a few modifications, it turned out great. I'm sure the original recipe is delicious but I am not known for following recipes to a tee.
This is a perfect healthy dish for a cool night.

Creole Shrimp Soup with Quinoa

Inspired by Marian C. Hanna's recipe in The Soup Sisters and Broth Brothers Cookbook

Serves 6
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 1 hour 20 minutes

Your shopping list:

1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup quinoa flour
1 medium onion (yellow or white), finely chopped
1 cup diced celery
1 sweet pepper, diced (I used yellow)
1/2 cup green onions
4 cloves garlic, minced
zest and juice of half of a lemon
2 cups of water
28oz can of diced tomatoes, no salt added
4oz can of tomato sauce, no salt added
5.5oz can of tomato paste
2 tsp worchestershire sauce
1 tsp salt (to taste)
1 tsp ground pepper
1/2 tsp cayenne
2 bay leaves
1 lb raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 lb scallops (or add more shrimp)
a handful of chopped parsley for garnish
Optional - cooked quinoa or brown rice

What to do with it:

1. In a large pot, heat oil over medium-high heat until it's shimmering. 
2. Add flour and stir constantly until the roux is the colour of peanut butter.
3. Add yellow onions, celery and pepper to the pot and cook, stirring often, until the onions have softened.
4. Reduce heat to medium and add green onions and garlic. Cook, stirring often, until everything has softened (approx 15 minutes)
5. Add lemon rind and juice to the pot along with water, tomato ingredients, worchestershire sauce, and seasonings. Bring to a boil.
6. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 50 minutes (stir occasionally).
7. Remove bay leaves and add shrimp and scallops
8. Simmer, uncovered for about 10 minutes
9. Serve with cooked quinoa and a sprinkle of parsley!

Detox time

After an amazing, yet tiring week's vacation in Puerto Plata, I'm ready for something that will help me get back on the health wagon. I took yesterday off and did groceries but didn't really plan out any meals for the week. I've decided that soup is on the menu tonight. I'm disappointed that I didn't remember to buy celery, but I'll have to do without. I generally make minestrone soup, but have no beans or regular potatoes. SO, what I've got here is a homemade vegetable soup, chock-full of deliciousness!

Veggie Soup for the "gotta make up for the terrible eating on vacation" Soul

Your shopping list:

1-2 Tbsp Olive oil
1 large onion, diced
4-5 garlic gloves
1 large sweet potato, cut into bite sized pieces
1 med zucchini, chopped
2 med carrots, chopped
1 head of broccoli, chopped
handful of green beans, cut into bite sized pieces
handful of spinach
1 large can diced tomatoes, no salt added
handful of mushrooms, sliced
turmeric, to taste
1 litre chicken broth
salt and pepper, to taste
oregano, to taste
basil, to taste

What to do with it:

1. in a large pot, heat olive oil
2. add onion, garlic and carrots to pot and  cook, stirring often for 5 mins
3. add green beans, zucchini to pot and stir well
4. mix in diced tomatoes, mushrooms and broccoli
5. pour broth into the pot and stir in seasonings
6. simmer for 20-30 mins (or until veggies are cooked enough for you)
7. Enjoy :)