I can still see the disgust on Dad’s face as he surveyed his garden, following whatever the current disaster might be. The green beans aren’t setting, the tomatoes aren’t ripening, the garden pests are devouring the cabbage, the garden is under water… a gardener’s woes are myriad. The solution to all of these problems is usually to just eat more zucchini. Because there will always be too much zucchini, regardless of the weather or pesky insects, and it will need to be eaten immediately.
But these problems pale in comparison to a farmer’s woes, due to operational scale. I’ve always thought of our family farm as a “gentleman’s farm”; my dad had a day job in the city which provided our income. While he spent most spare moments puttering around the farm and gardening, our income wasn’t dependent on crops. A neighboring farmer cultivated the acreage, with dad getting a share of the profit. When there was one, most probably.
Our Community Supported Agriculture farmer here in Arizona is having one of those years with myriad woes. The excruciatingly hot summer slowly gave way to an excessively warm fall, in which the usual seasonal crops foundered. Given that zucchini is out of season, we are eating bounteous amounts of pumpkin and winter squash, for which I suspect the farmer had other plans… but sadly, it’s still 2020. At least, winter squash keeps longer than zucchini!
We have roasted, mashed and pureed. Our Thanksgiving pumpkin pie was actually made from locally grown pumpkin. And we’ve made several batches of Pumpkin Walnut Soup. I’ve long been a fan of soups starring winter squash, but like many vegetable dishes, don’t find them filling enough to be the star of the plate. Given that my soup meal is usually soup and salad, this particular soup needed to buck up and develop some heartiness. Which it did, with a small addition of white beans and toasted walnuts. The beans provide protein and the walnuts bring in healthy fat and delicious flavor. Savory, herbaceous and warm, crowned with a crisp topping, this is delicious soup.
It matters not if you are inundated with winter squash from the garden… there’s a plentiful supply this time of year at your local grocer. However you obtain your squash, this soup fits the bill for a warming winter meal.
Pumpkin Walnut Soup
Ingredients
- 1 2.5-3 lb sugar pumpkin or winter squash
- 3/4 cup chopped onion
- 3/4 cup chopped fennel
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 3/4 tsp dried thyme
- 3/4 tsp dried sage
- 3/4 tsp dried rosemary
- 3/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 bay leaf, crumbled
- 1/2 cup walnut pieces
- 1/2 cup cooked white beans
- 3 cups vegetable broth
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 2 tbsp crisp croutons or toasted bread crumbs
- 2 tbsp chopped parsley
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400° F.
- Cut the pumpkin in half and scoop out the seeds. Peel andchop into 1-inch chunks. Toss the pumpkin, onion and fennel with the olive oiland spices, through the bay leaf. Turn onto a sheet pan, and roast for 20-25minutes, until tender.
- Meanwhile, place the walnuts into a pie dish, and toast alongside the vegetables for 5-7 minutes, until fragrant; remove and cool slightly. Chop 2 tablespoons of the walnuts and reserve.
- When tender, combine the vegetables, 1-½ cups of the broth, the beans and remaining walnuts in a blender. Blend until smooth. Pour into a saucepan and thin to desired consistency with remaining broth. Stir in the balsamic vinegar and heat slowly to a simmer.
- Combine the croutons, parsley and reserved chopped walnutsin a small bowl. Ladle the soup into bowls, and sprinkle the topping over thetop, and serve.
Notes
- Nutrition
- Calories: 292
- Total fat: 16.9 g
- Sat fat: 1.7 g
- Cholesterol: 0 g
- Sodium: 998 mg
- Total carb: 29.6 g
- Fiber: 9.8 g
- Total Sugars: 4.8 g
- Protein: 9.6 g
