Recipe - Pumpkin Soup With Chives

One half cup Onion; minced
5 cup Homemade chicken stock
well seasoned
2 One half cup Pumpkin puree
canned or fresh*
Salt and nutmeg; to taste
Cayenne pepper; to taste
2 cup Light cream

GARNISH
Whipped cream (opt'l.)
Fresh chives; chopped

PRESENTATION
Hollowedout pumpkin shell
plus lid (opt'l.)

*If using fresh pumpkin: Wash, halve and scrape out seeds and fiber. Peel
and cube. Cook, covered, in boiling water until tender (about 25 minutes).
Mash in blender or by hand and let drain in strainer for 30 minutes. You'll
need about 5 cups of cubed fresh pumpkin to yield enough cooked puree. If
you plan to use the pumpkin shell as the soup tureen, cook all the cubed
pumpkin, saving any leftover puree for use in pies, breads or muffins.

To make the soup: Cook minced onion with stock in a large saucepan for
about 10 minutes. Add pumpkin puree and seasonings. Process in blender or
food processor until smooth. Return to saucepan. Add cream and heat
through, but do not allow to boil. Taste and adjust seasonings.

Ladle into pumpkin shell if desired, replace lid, and ladle into individual
bowls at the table. Garnish each with a dollop of whipped cream and
sprinkle with chopped chives.

From _Nancy Enright's Canadian Herb Cookbook_ by Nancy Enright. Toronto:
James Lorimer & Company, Inc., 1985. Pg. 28. ISBN 0888627882. Electronic
format by Cathy Harned.

From Gemini's MASSIVE MealMaster collection at www.synapse.com/~gemini