Creamy Pumpkin Soup~with Sage

As promised, the beginning of our Thanksgiving meal in Recipes.

Creamy Pumpkin Soup with Sage~

Served in the Pumpkin Shell~

2 teaspoons real butter
1 cup chopped onion
3/4 teaspoon dried rubbed sage
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 quart + home made chicken broth ( or 3 to 4 10oz cans low sodium broth )
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
24 ounces of canned pumpkin
1 cup chopped peeled Macintosh apples or other sweet cooking apple
1/2 cup evaporated skim milk
Sage sprigs (optional)

Directions

Melt butter in a Dutch oven over medium heat.
Add onion: saute 3 minutes.
Add sage, curry powder, and nutmeg; cook 30 seconds.
Stir in flour; cook 30 seconds.
Add broth tomato paste, and salt, stirring well with a whisk.
Stir in pumpkin and apple; bring to a boil.
Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 25 minutes or until pumpkin is tender, stirring occasionally.

Remove from heat; cool slightly.

Place mixture in a blender or food processor; process until smooth.
Return mixture to Dutch oven; add milk.
Cook until thoroughly heated.
Garnish with sage sprigs if desired.

(Serving Pumpkin)

Take a large size pumpkin and cut about 1/3 round from the top.

Scoop out a fair amount of the meat and all the fiber strands.
Salt and pepper the inside really well.

Heat oven to 400 and place a large tray of water in oven and allow to get very hot.

Place pumpkin in the water and leave in the oven until it starts to look and feel a bit soft and maybe brown around the top. ( do not over cook or it will split.

Remove from oven just before serving time, pour soup into pumpkin and use as a center
piece for the first course of your holiday meal.

Colorful dishes are also a nice addition to the Thanksgiving table...especially for the soup course.