Pumpkin Soup loaded. A bowl of comfort.

This is not your ordinary Pumpkin soup it’s loaded with all the goodies. Thick and packed with flavour it’s a bowl full of comfort you can have on the table in around 30 minutes

Pumpkin Soup that’s loaded with goodies and bound to become a favourite in your house

There’s nothing more comforting than a big bowl of Pumpkin soup. I always get a bit bored with the “classic” Pumpkin soup especially when everything is thrown into one big pot and boiled together, it just tastes a bit like canteen food. This is just the opposite. You will fall in love with the sweet flavour of softened onion and spices. It’s thick and luscious and is loaded with lots of great extras to make the best dinner or even lunch made in no time at all.

The flavour in this loaded soup will surprise you because it’s quick to make and fun to put together. It has a bit of a Mexican twist that I promise the family is going to love.

Plus you can top it off with as much or as little cheese and sour cream as you want!

I’ve also loaded mine with spicy chorizo for a little hit.

 Loaded Pumpkin Soup is easy to make

You’ll need:

• Pumpkin.  I like to use Kent or Jap Pumpkin but you could use butternut pumpkin (squash) or Queensland Blue. In the US Pumpkins or Squash that are good for cooking are usually labelled “sugar pumpkins” or “pie pumpkins.” Large carving pumpkins aren’t suitable as they are watery and stringy.
• Onion and garlic. These will enhance the sweet flavour of the pumpkin if they are cooked off gently before adding Pumpkin
• Potato.  Adds a bit of extra body and creaminess
• Stock.  Chicken or vegetable really elevate the flavour and are much better to use than just water
• Spices. The spices here are of a Mexican base. You could even use a Mexican spice mix if you want, but I love to add all my favourites. Cumin, oregano, smokey paprika and cinnamon.

How to load your soup

Loading up this Pumpkin Soup is what makes it so much fun.

It also makes it a bit more of a meal than just a bowl of soup. Once you make it you will realise there are all kinds if possibilities for “loading”. I use these bits but hey, you could probably think of more.

• pieces of whole roasted pumpkin
• chopped chorizo or bacon
• tomato salsa
• avocado
• jalapenos
• grated cheese
• cornchips
• coriander
• sour cream

This is how you put it together

1. Chop the pumpkin and potato ( or buy already chopped pumpkin)
2. Leave some in big pieces to be roasted whole. Turn the oven on and roast them while the soup is cooking
3. Chop onion and garlic then cook them till sweet and fragrant with the spices
4. Add the pumpkin and potato along with the stock

When the Pumpkin is tender

1. Simmered and soft the soup is ready when the pumpkin is tender (15 minutes)
2. Puree the soup. I use a stick blender. If you use any other kind of blender be careful with very hot soup, don’t overfill the blender. Work in batches.
3. Put sliced chorizo or bacon onto the tray and roast in the oven for 10 minutes ( I put the Pumpkin and chorizo in around the same time or use the same tray when the pumpkin is finished)
4. Toppings of chopped tomato, mixed with jalapenos, sour cream, coriander and chips are the best toppings

Altogether this Loaded Pumpkin Soup will take you about 30 minutes maximum. It’s a beauty and could also be eaten with some toasted warm tortillas if you fancy them too! They are great in the sandwich press. They come out all crispy and warm and make great dippers!

Hey, here’s some more soup recipes to load up on

• Sweet Potato and lentil Soup with bacon
• Mushroom preserved lemon and cashew soup
• Cauliflower, Quinoa and spinach soup
• How to make soup with leftover vegetables

More Pumpkin recipes

• Beetroot, Pumpkin and haloumi Salad
• Pumpkin Tart with brown sugar meringue
• Pumpkin Latte Cheesecake
• Pumpkin, Chickpea salad with Feta

If you’ve tried this Loaded Pumpkin Soup or any other recipe on the blog please let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you! You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM and PINTEREST to see more delicious food and the things I’m getting up to.

Tania Cusack

Loaded Pumpkin Soup

5 from 4 votes

This is not your ordinary pumpkin soup it's loaded with all the goodies. Thick and packed with flavour it's a bowl full of comfort you can have on the table in around 30 minutes.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Servings: 4 People

Course: Maincourse, Soup

Cuisine: international

Calories: 932

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 1.5 kg pumpkin 3.3 lb | before chopping
• 200 gm potato peeled and cut / 7oz
• 40 ml oil vegie or olive | 2 tablsp
• 250 gm onion diced x 2 / 8oz
• 6 cloves garlic minced
• 2 tablespoons cumin ground
• 2 tablespoons smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon thyme dried
• 2 tablespoons oregano dried
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon ground
• 1 tablespoon achiote powder optional (specialist stores, a yellow coloured paste that is found in mexican cooking, it adds sourness, colour and flavour)
• 1 litre stock/ broth chicken or vegetable | 1.05 quart
• 50 ml oil olive or vegetable | 1.69 fl oz

Load up the soup

• 500 gm pumpkin peeled and cut into 4 wedges | 1.1 lb
• 40 ml olive oil 1.5 fl oz
• 150 gm chorizo sliced into rings or crumbled | 5.3 oz approx
• 100 gm sour cream 3.5 oz
• 100 gm corn chips 3.5 oz
• 100 gm tomato diced
• 1 small avocado diced
• 2 tablespoons jalapeno chopped. optional
• 40 ml lemon juice 2 tablespoon- 1/2 lemon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 bunch coriander chopped / some reserved for garnish
• 50 gm cheddar cheese grated | 1.7 oz

Method

 

To make the soup

1. Turn the oven on to 180 C / 350F. And set aside a lined baking sheet.
2. Dice the onion and garlic.
3. Measure out the spices
4. Peel and chop 1.5 kg of pumpkin | 3.3 lb. Peel and chop the potato. Also cut and peel the 4 pumpkin wedges (500 gm or 1.1 lb)
5. Warm a pot large enough to hold all the ingredients (approx 5-6 litres -5.3 quarts). Add the oil the onion and garlic and stir till starting to soften. Add the spices and stir till fragrant.
6. Add the chopped pumpkin pieces and potato, reserving the wedges for a bit later.
7. Pour over the stock or broth and let the soup simmer for 15 minutes or so until tender.
8. Meanwhile put the wedges of Pumpkin onto the baking sheet in the middle and sprinkle the wedges with a little oil, salt and pepper. Leave the room down the sides to add chorizo pieces halfway through the baking time. Set the timer for 10 minutes and bake. The pumpkin will take about 15 to 20 minutes. At the 10 minute mark add the sliced (or crumbled) Chorizo to the tray and bake till Pumpkin is just tender. This will be another 5-10 minutes. Take out of the oven and set aside. The chorizo should be cooked through and starting to colour. You may need to leave it a little longer by itself. Keep these warm till needed shortly.
9. Once the pumpkin is tender in the soup turn off the heat. Puree with a stick blender till smooth. Alternatively you could use a processor but be very careful as when the soup is hot the steam can cause it to spray out of the lid in a hot lava like fashion.
10. Adjust the seasoning. The soup will need salt and some nice ground pepper. Set the soup aside with a lid on

Loading the soup

1. Prepare all the ingredients for the topping and group together. Dice the tomato nice and fine. Add chopped jalapeno and chopped coriander, stir together in a bowl.
2. Chop the avocado into small dice and add to the tomato mix. Add the lemon juice and a good pinch of salt. Stir together without breaking up the avocado.
3. Chop the chorizo into smaller pieces
4. Set aside grated cheddar cheese and sour cream along with the corn chips
5. When ready, reheat the soup, if neccesary then ladel into 4 big bowls. Put a wedge of pumpkin in the middle then add sprinkles of chorizo, cheddar cheese a spoon of avocado salsa and a dollop of sour cream. Top with corn chips and serve with extra coriander and sliced jalapeno.

Notes

This is also a fun way to get kids or even adults that like to have fun...to join in and load up their own soup.

Just lay out all the ingredients and let them go for it. You could also add

• spanish onion
• black beans
• garlic in your salsa
• crumbled market cheese
• feta 
• bacon
• chipotle chilli crema
• lime
• fresh chilli

Vegan or Vegetarian

You can also make this vegan or vegetarian too. For a vegan base add vegetable stock and some extra nutritional yeast for more of a flavour kick. Top it off with vegan sour cream or cashew cream with chipotle chilli, crispy fried onions, toasted cashews, vegan bacon, tamari sunflower seeds, toasted chopped tortillas.