Pumpkin & Pear Soup
Velvety smooth texture with both sweet and savory notes, this soup has the richness of a creamy soup - but without the cream. You can make this soup almost entirely in advance and garnish before serving.
Yvonne Duivenvoorden
- Duration
- Cook Time
- Prep Time
- 10Servings
Ingredients
- 2 firm ripe pears, divided
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 3 1/2-lb cooking pumpkin, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 7 1/2 cups)
- 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh sage leaves
- 1/2 tsp ground allspice
- 1/2 tsp each sea salt and fresh ground black pepper, plus additional to taste
- 5 cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
- 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
Preparation
- Dice 1 1/2 pears and set aside. (NOTE: If making in advance, cover and refrigerate remaining half pear until needed.)
- In a 6-qt stockpot on medium-high, heat oil. Add pumpkin and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 minutes.
- Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 4 minutes. Stir in diced pear, sage, allspice, 1/2 tsp each salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are crisp-tender, about 4 minutes.
- Add broth, scraping up any browned bits in the pot with a spoon.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until pumpkin and pear are very tender, 6 to 8 minutes.
- Using an immersion blender, carefully purée soup. (Alternatively, purée soup in an upright blender, in batches, remove plastic lid in cover and cover top with a kitchen towel to allow steam to escape.)
- Cut remaining half pear into matchsticks. In a medium bowl, combine matchsticks with lemon juice, stirring to coat. Cover matchsticks and set aside in the refrigerator until needed.
- To serve, reheat soup on medium, stirring occasionally, until heated through. Season with additional salt and pepper. Garnish with pear matchsticks.
Nutrition Information
- Serving Size: 1 cup pumpkin & pear soup and 1 tbsp pear matchsticks
- Calories: 84
- Carbohydrate Content: 14 g
- Fat Content: 3 g
- Fiber Content: 2 g
- Protein Content: 1 g
- Saturated Fat Content: 1 g
- Sodium Content: 168 mg
- Sugar Content: 6 g
