Wed, 10/31/2007 - 21:55 — Steffen
It's Halloween! Pumpkin season. And it's time for another little experiment. The result: A chanterelle and pumpkin soup with garlic, cayenne and a hint of ginger, cumin, cinnamon and allspice. Subtle flavors. Really good!
Ingredients
- 1 lb / 450 g chanterelles (or other mushrooms), cleaned
- 1 small onion, sliced
- 3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
- 2 tbsp butter
- 5 oz / 150 g fresh pumpkin, cut into large cubes
- ⅛ tsp ground ginger
- ⅛ tsp ground cumin
- ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- a pinch of ground cinnamon
- a pinch of allspice
- ¾ tsp salt (or to taste)
- ½ tsp cayenne pepper (or to taste)
- 1 quart / 1 l water
- 2 tsp gin
- ½ cup / 120 ml cream
- ¼ cup / 60 ml dry white wine
Preparation
- Set a heavy pan over medium-high heat. Add butter and brown lightly. Add onion and cook until lightly browned.
- Add garlic and a few small, nice-looking mushrooms (for garnish) and cook for a few minutes until the garlic is lightly browned, too. Remove garnish mushrooms and set aside.
- Add pumpkin cubes, chanterelles, salt, pepper and spices. Cook until pumpkin is soft. Reduce heat if necessary.
- Add water, gin and white wine. Simmer for another 5-10 minutes.
- Reduce heat. Blend with a stick blender until very smooth. Stir in cream.
- Strain (very important for a smooth soup). Adjust seasoning with salt and cayenne pepper.
- Serve with the garnish chanterelles and, if you feel adventurous, a little lemon balm chiffonade (I love the taste!). Otherwise, parsley will do fine.
Preparation time about 60-90 minutes
Yields 4-6 servings