Velvet Pumpkin Soup and Oatmeal Muffins
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The name of this soup refers to its texture, not its taste. Though it's smooth in the mouth, it's fiery on the tongue! Red pepper, garlic, coriander and curry give this soup its heat. The oatmeal muffins served alongside are slightly sweet, slightly chewy, and strike just the right note with this assertive soup. Read our blog about pumpkin soup and oatmeal muffins, with additional photos, at Bakers' Banter.
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter
3 garlic cloves, minced or chopped
1 large onion, diced
1 1/4 teaspoons curry powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or more to taste)
3 cups chicken broth
16-ounce can solid-pack pumpkin (or squash)
1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk
Melt butter in a large saucepan, and sauté garlic and onions till golden brown. Add curry powder, salt, coriander, and cayenne pepper; simmer gently for 2 minutes. Stir in broth and simmer, partially covered, for 20 minutes.
Add pumpkin, stirring till smooth. Add evaporated milk. Heat over medium heat for 5 minutes; don't allow soup to boil (but a simmer is OK).
In batches, transfer soup to blender or food processor. Process till very smooth. Serve hot. Yield: about 8 servings.
Oatmeal Muffins
Oatmeal muffins are a real back-to-basics treat. The taste of these will probably bring you back to your childhood, when a bowl of steaming oatmeal on the table was a wintertime constant. Don't expect a big blast of flavor from these; they're designed to be mild, a comfortable complement to the more assertively spiced soup they accompany. 1 1/2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
Preheat your oven to 400°F. Lightly grease a standard muffin pan; or line the pan with papers, and grease the papers.
1/2 cup quick-cooking or old-fashioned oats
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 cup milk
1/3 cup vegetable oil or softened butter
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
cinnamon-sugar for topping (optional)
In a large bowl, stir together flour, oats, sugar, salt and baking powder. In a separate bowl, beat together milk, oil or butter, eggs, and vanilla.
Gently stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients, mixing only enough to blend. Spoon batter into 12 muffin cups. Sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar, if desired.
Bake muffins for 20 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove muffins from the pan and cool completely on a rack. Yield: 12 muffins.
This recipe reprinted from The Baking Sheet Newsletter, Vol. III, No. 3, January-February 1992 issue.
