Reviewed: Mar. 13, 2013

As written I would rate this about 2.5 but the concept is good, so I ran with it. I sauteed 1 tbs fresh ginger, minced, with the onion in 1 tbs olive oil. To that I added 2 cups of homemade chicken stock and 1 cup of diced red potato, skin on and simmered for about 15 minutes until the potato was almost cooked. I used canned pumpkin and stirred it all together and continued to simmer, adding 1 tsp ground rosemary, 1/2 tsp cayenne and 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes until the potatoes were cooked. I removed the pot from the heat and added 1 cup 2% milk. Still low fat but very flavorful. Thanks Cheryl, for a good springboard.

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Reviewer:

BigShotsMom

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Long Island, New York, USA

Living In: Long Beach, New York, USA

Reviewed: Mar. 4, 2013

Tried this with a new stick blender & yummy. Used low fat margarine. Dolloped blue cheese in the middle of bowl to serve & that livened it up!

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Reviewer:

Annie

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Christchurch, Canterbury, New Zealand

Reviewed: Dec. 1, 2009

Definitely not the most flavorful soup when done just as the recipe states, but really good-- with modification. After tweaking a bit, I finally came up with a good soup: I used the same amount of pumpkin as called for, but cubed 3 medium SWEET (not baking) potatoes, and used them in addition to the pumpkin. I used liberal amounts of cinnamon, nutmeg, and (most importantly) salt. I pureed part of it well, but left part chunky, and that gave it a good texture. Just remember to use the recipe as a guide, and flavor it however you like, and you'll have a delicious soup!

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Reviewer:

Ollie

Reviewed: Nov. 30, 2008

This is a good base recipe, however, for more flavor and if you are not watching calories, not that this soup has a lot to beging with; I added a large carrot, 1 clove of garlic and a med. size granny smith apple. I pureed, the potatoes, carrots, apple, onion and garlic in a food processor and sauteed in 4 tblsp. of butter until soft. I transfered everything to a large pot, including the pumpkin puree which my so generous girlfriend gave to me after doing all the work, and then I added 1/2 cup of brown sugar, 1/4 cup of maple syrup, 2 tsp of cinammon, 1/2 tsp. of ground ginger, 1 tsp. of ground nutmeg, 1 1/2 tsp. of salt and a handful of chopped fresh parsley. I also added 1/2 tsp. of dry thyme and 5 cups of chicken stock. I used Herbox Instant bouillon very tasty. Bring to a boil and simmer for about 30 minutes, cool and then use a hand blender to puree and remove any lumps. My finicky 10 year old loved it and enjoyed watching me prepare it and expirimenting with different ingredients to add flavor to this soup. I love fine dining and I believe that this soup could sneak its way into one of those fancy restaurants I like to frequent.

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Reviewer:

fenstygirl1

Reviewed: Oct. 25, 2008

As mentioned, this was an excellent based soup and was not based on creme. That being said, once it was put through the blender, it was bland. This was very easily fixed with a LOT of spices. When I first saw a dash, I almost laughed. I ended up putting in about 3 tablespoons of nutmeg, 1 tablespoon of ginger, and 4 tablespoons of cinnamon. I also used a sweet potato as suggested. Finally, to give a little nuttier flavor. I added about 1/4 cup of hazelnut fat free cream. This definitely kicked it up. All told it was a lot of fun to work with a girlfriend and figure out what to add to the soup.

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Reviewer:

Jennifer

Reviewed: Oct. 20, 2008

I was very happy with the way this soup came out. It was a bit bland, but I won't hold that against it, as it was easily fixed by being a bit more liberal with the spices and adding some honey. I loved the result and will definitely make a batch of this at Thanksgiving this year. I made this with just what I had on hand, so I wound up leaving out the potatoes and using slightly less milk.

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Reviewer:

Megan H.

Reviewed: Nov. 19, 2007

I made this recipe as listed and added a few more spices such as rosemary and thyme, as suggested. I used fresh pumpkin. It smelled so delicious!!! I think the wonderful aroma contributed to my level of disappointment when I tasted it. It tasted like utterly bland potato soup. Maybe my taste buds weren't working that day???

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Reviewer:

DRSHAMROCK

Reviewed: Apr. 17, 2007

Excellent - I added a microwaves cooked, chopped up rasher of bacon

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Reviewer:

ClassicLady

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Taumarunui, Waikato, New Zealand

Living In: Te Puke, Bay Of Plenty, New Zealand

Reviewed: Mar. 28, 2007

Sorry, I just really didn't like it. My husband thought it was ok. I ended up spicing it up quite a bit- I added some yellow curry powder, ginger, and a splash of sherry and left out the nutmeg. It just tasted like... pumpkin. Bland. Like it needs something with a bigger flavor... just needs something. I did give 2 stars for it being such a healthy recipe, though. I left out the butter and it was nearly fat-free.

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