Pumpkin Soup (2)

Instructions

• Begin by baking the pumpkin. We have found that you get about 4 pounds of cooked pumpkin flesh from an 8 pound whole pumpkin. If you do not have a fresh pumpkin, you can substitute either butternut or hubbard squash.
• Wash and bake the pumpkin at 350 degrees F. in a conventional oven or in a microwave oven on “high” until the pumpkin becomes tender and begins to sag. Remove the pumpkin from the oven.
• Wash and peel the onion and garlic, and place them in a covered dish and bake until cooked. If you are using a conventional oven, you can bake the onion and garlic at the same time you bake the pumpkin.
• Cut the pumpkin in half from top to bottom. Remove the seeds and save them for roasting. Scoop the pumpkin flesh off of the rind and place the flesh in the container of a blender. Add some apple juice to aid in blending, cover and run at high speed until smooth. Pour into a large covered microwaveable dish or in a pot. Repeat as necessary until all the pumpkin is pureed. The baked onion and garlic can be pureed with the pumpkin.
• Add any remaining apple juice and the other ingredients to the covered dish or pot and mix well.
• If cooking in the microwave oven, cook on high for about 15 minutes.
• If cooking on the stove top, simmer for about 30 minutes, mixing frequently.
• Please Note: Nutritional values listed may vary from final results depending on actual measurements and brands used to prepare the recipe.