Friday, December 5, 2014

Pumpkin White Bean Soup for Alyssa’s Baby Celebration


We are celebrating with soup today! This is how much I love soup … I’m bringing it to a party, a party in honor of my friend, Alyssa. Alyssa is the creator of Everyday Maven and is welcoming her second baby in January. I am delighted to gather with a wonderful community of food bloggers to share recipes and good wishes for her.


I’ve had the pleasure of spending time with Alyssa both in Seattle and here in the Valley. She is vibrant and beautiful and creates incredibly delicious, healthy food. My family has enjoyed quite a few of her recipes (I’ve made her chocolate mug cake more times than I can count!) and I appreciate her step-by-step instructions and attention to detail in every recipe.


Knowing that Alyssa will be a busy mom to two sweet boys soon, we all wanted to share dishes that are quick and easy to prepare and will nourish her family well. With the arrival of the snowy days here, I have been making more soups and they are marvelous lunches for me to bring in to the store - I fill a thermos with steaming soup and lunch is ready to go. With her baby arriving in January, I want Alyssa to be able to prepare a filling, warm lunch to sustain her and her family on those damp, chilly days of Seattle winter. Plus, she can make a double batch and pop some in the freezer.


This Pumpkin White Bean soup is one I have made often over the years. It is hearty and simple to make, especially since it uses pantry staples that are easily kept on hand. Beans, pumpkin puree and tomatoes form the base of the soup. The original recipe calls for using black beans, but one time I had only white beans and I found they worked even better since I prefer the color of the soup more.


Onions and garlic are softened in olive oil, and then the beans, pumpkin and tomatoes are added and simmered in chicken stock. I also include carrots sometimes for extra veggies and to enhance the orange hue. A quick puree with an immersion blender creates a smooth, luscious texture. Cumin seasons the soup while a splash of sherry vinegar brightens it. Earthy, creamy and warm, this soup is full of flavor and should help energize a lovely mom with two little ones. Congratulations to you, Alyssa!


A huge thank you to Faith of An Edible Mosaic and Liz of  The Lemon Bowl for hosting this celebration! Please be sure to check out all the talented cooks below celebrating Alyssa and her expanding family today.

Pumpkin White Bean Soup
Serves 6-8
Adapted from New Kosher Cuisine for All Seasons
by Ivy Feuerstadt and Melinda Strauss

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
½ pound carrots, sliced (you don’t have to peel)
1 28 ounce can tomato puree
1 28 ounce can unsweetened pumpkin puree
2 15 ounce cans white cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
32 ounces chicken stock
2 tablespoons red wine
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
Freshly ground black pepper and salt to taste
Fresh green herb for serving, such as parsley

In a large soup pot, warm the olive oil over medium low heat and saute the onion and garlic until soft, about 10 minutes. Add the carrots, tomato puree, pumpkin puree, beans, chicken stock, red wine and cumin and stir. Increase the heat to high until the soup just starts to bubble, then lower the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes to infuse the flavors and soften the carrots.

Remove the soup from the heat and puree it with an immersion blender until smooth, being very careful not to splatter any hot soup. Stir in the sherry and salt and pepper the soup to your taste. Garnish with a sprinkle of green herbs when serving.

This soup easily doubles and freezes well.

Alyssa's Baby Celebration:

Breakfast

Spaghetti Squash Hash from Eats Well With Others

Lunch

Hearty Garbanzo Soup from Sweet Life Bake
Pumpkin White Bean Soup from Blue Kale Road

Dinner

Slow Cooker Red Wine Pot Roast from Jeanette’s Healthy Living
Lemon Pepper Chicken with Arugula from Virtually Homemade
Roast Chicken Ratatouille from An Edible Mosaic

Snack


26 comments:

  1. This dish looks incredible. Pumpkin and white beans, plus all those veggies...this is right up my alley! Thank you so much for participating!!

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    1. Thank you, Faith! Thank you so much for hosting this with Liz - such a lovely celebration for Alyssa!

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  2. I'm such a big fan of pumpkin soup! I love this variation with the white beans and tomatoes. Something I haven't tired before. It looks delicious!

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    1. Thank you, Lori! So much fun to celebrate Alyssa. :)

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  3. This sounds fantastic, just what I want in front of me right now to warm me up. I love the addition of white beans with pumpkin!

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    1. Thank you, Heather! Soup is so perfect for warming up, isn't it? I hope you're staying warm this winter.

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  4. Love the sherry vinegar in this comforting soup. Perfect for a new mom or anyone!

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    1. Thank you, Jeanette! The sherry vinegar really brightens the flavor of the soup - I'm a big fan of it.

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  5. Hannah this is absolutely fantastic! I love soup too and I'd gladly take it to any celebration. :) This is definitely on my list to prepare next week!

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    1. Thank you, Karista! I hope you enjoy it. And I hope you're having a warm, wonderful holiday season so far! xx

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  6. Hannah you know me all too well to bring soup! My favorite food for sure :) This sounds so wonderful and I agree that I think a double batch is necessary to have some stashed in the freezer.

    Thank you so much for participating and for the kind words. I woke up 100% surprised by this and filled with so much love and gratitude.

    Alyssa
    xoxox

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    1. It's such a pleasure to celebrate you, Alyssa! I'm happy we could surprise you and I look forward to to celebrating in person. xx

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  7. I'm all about soup these days. . it's so cold here in Wisconsin. . and I love savory pumpkin dishes. . this soup looks amazing!

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    1. Thank you so much, Alice! I hope you are staying warm and enjoying lots of soup.

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  8. Such a lovely soup Hannah, so nice to see you hope you are well, Congratulations to your friend the food all sounds wonderful and I do love your soup. Happy Holidays.

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    1. Thank you so much, Suzanne! All is good here and I hope you are having a warm, wonderful holiday season so far.

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  9. What a nice thing to do! And what a terrific soup. We love soup at this time of the year, and the flavors in this are terrific! Thanks so much.

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    1. Thank you, John! I know you make some wonderful soups in your kitchen - I've enjoyed making quite a few of them myself. Hope you are having a lovely, warm holiday season so far!

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  10. Hannah, this is definitely soup to warm the soul, and perfect for a busy mum-to-be in the middle of winter. The could is gorgeous, and I can understand how subbing in the white beans for the black would definitely help with that. Love the flavourings of cumin and sherry vinegar.

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    1. Thank you, Sue! I appreciate your kind words. I can imagine you are starting to enjoy some warm summer days now. I hope you have a lovely holiday season!

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  11. I know I would enjoy this soup for two reasons…lots of flavor and easy to prepare. It sounds delicious and I like that you added a little vinegar at the end. I find that really brings out the flavor.

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    1. Thank you so much, Karen. You're right, the vinegar really brightens the flavor and I'm thinking of some other soups where a splash could be a good addition. I hope you're having a warm, cozy holiday season!

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  12. That looks super delicious and healthy. My little one will surely love the taste this. She's turning 6 months old tomorrow and this will be the 1st thing she'll eat.

    Thanks for the idea Hannah.

    Regards,
    Micaella
    Highly recommended Austin SEO Don Allen information

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