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Soup of the week: white bean pumpkin

We are obviously big soup fans in this house. The boys refuse to eat any soup that isn’t either chili or chicken noodle but I’ve learned to not let that deter me and I just keep on making soup and Dave and I eat it with pleasure. They’ll come around, they always do. The veggie delivery from Vermont Valley this week included a baking pumpkin, red onion and garlic and I had celery and carrot left from weeks past. Further digging uncovered a 1 pound bag of white beans in the pantry and there is currently a plentiful supply of Willow Creek bacon in the freezer. Ham or ham hocks would have been optimal but I chose a package of bacon that was mostly lean. With a product like Willow Creek bacon you really can’t go wrong. Note: a baking pumpkin is small, maybe an inch or two larger than a softball. If the pumpkins you see say they are baking pumpkins but they too large you should avoid them and use a butternut or acorn squash instead.

1 large red onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 carrot, diced
6 cloves garlic, chopped
4 slices bacon (as lean as you can get), diced
2 tbps olive oil
1 small baking pumpkin, split in half, and seeds scooped out
1 pound of white beans, picked over and soaked overnight, then rinsed and drained
red pepper flakes
sage
salt / pepper
white vinegar

Put your pumpkins halves on a foil lined baking sheet and bake at 325 for about 30 minutes or until tender. Set aside to cool.

Heat your soup pot on medium low and add the olive oil. Add the onion, celery, and carrots and allow to cook until soft and translucent. Add the bacon and the garlic and continue to cook. Add 1 tsp of sage and 1 tsp of red pepper flakes. Stir and then add the beans. Cover with water. Turn the heat up until you get a boil and then reduce the heat to a strong simmer. Cover the pot and allow to cook for an hour, stirring occasionally and adding water if necessary.

Prepare the pumpkin by peeling off the skin and cutting the pumpkin into 1/2 inch chunks. Add to the soup, stir, adjust the seasoning and allow to simmer for another 30 minutes.

You can either eat this soup or wait overnight. It is one of those soups that gets better when the flavors have a chance to rest together and co-mingle.

Add about 1 tbsp of white vinegar as you heat it up. It will brighten the flavors. I’ll serve this with a baquette and some Pleasant Ridge Reserve I picked up at Willy Street Coop today. Dessert can be the Oatmeal bars I nabbed at the Co-op too.

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October 16, 2006 | Filed Under food, soup, salad, sandwich, vegetable 

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4 Responses to “Soup of the week: white bean pumpkin”

  1. Jacob Ray on October 17th, 2006

    Fantastic! How timely. I just finished brining, curing, and smoking about ten pounds of venison this weekend. I’ve been on the prowl for a good soup or chili recipe where I could substitute the bacon or a ham hock with some smoked venison. This is just the ticket I was looking for.

  2. vanessa on October 17th, 2006

    What kind of wood do you use to smoke venison? Jambalaya might be another dish to use it in or even an etouffee. If you were in the mood for something rich you could try it in Pasta Carbonara. Black Bean Chili would work too.

  3. Jacob Ray on October 17th, 2006

    I use apple, though this is my first experience smoking venison, having tried a wild turkey and pheasant, which turned out surprisingly well. I plan on experimenting with cherry wood and different brine recipes. Good suggestions. I hadn’t thought about jambalaya or pasta, but I’ll consider those next.

  4. Jacob Ray on October 20th, 2006

    This turned out incredibly well. The cured venison added so much, with its smoky, salty, and ham-like flavor. It was the perfect ending to a chilly fall day.

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