Pumpkin Bisque

It's pumpkin season and time to make this creamy pumpkin soup, that has a potato base. This bisque is garnished with a fried sage leaf and toasted pumpkin seeds.

I'm taking liberties calling this a bisque, but I call all soups that are thick a bisque. This starts with a potato base and the flavors are layered from there. A fried sage leaf and toasted pumpkin seeds finish this dish perfectly. It's all the tastes of Fall in one bowl.

I always thought that pumpkins are from the root vegetable family, I was so surprised to find out pumpkins are a fruit. Who knew? Their cousin the gourd is also a fruit!

Not all fruit is sweet (ie: tomato) and the pumpkin would fall in the savory fruit category. (see, now you can win Jeopardy with all these fun things you're learning on this blog!)

This bisque takes time and it's something you let simmer on the stove as you go about your Domestic Goddess responsibilities.

Let's get cooking, you'll need:

4 large white potatoes - chopped

2 tbsp of minced shallots

2 tbsp butter

1 tbsp chopped fresh sage

1 quart whole milk

1 cup Iadhoan Potato Flakes

1/2 cup heavy cream

2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

1 cup pumpkin puree

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp crushed black pepper

Whole Sage Leaves (fried in vegetable oil) to finished dish

Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

In a large soup pot, brown the shallots in butter. Add potatoes (peeled and chopped) and pour the milk in. Add chopped sage and let this simmer until the potatoes are tender. I use an immersible blender and puree the potatoes, leaving some chunky for texture.

If you're going to use a blender, do this in small patches. You MUST cover the top of your blender with a dish cloth unless you really want to repaint your kitchen in the near future. When I was little, the pressure cooker exploded with pea soup. That nasty green substance hung from the ceiling and was gross. We could have sold that to Nickolodeon as the original "Green Slime". Funny the things you remember from your childhood, no? Avoid the slime, cover your blender!

Stir in the pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie spice. Allow the bisque to simmer on low for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and add the heavy cream and potato flakes. This will thicken the soup to become a bisque. (If too thick add some water, if too thin add a little more potato flakes)

I guess my secret is out! I use Idahoan Potato Flakes to thicken all my creamy soups. It's easy and gives you the perfect constancy for the soup.

Finish the soup with salt and pepper (you can add more or less, it's to taste) Garnish the bisque with a fried sage leaf and toasted pumpkin seeds.

Enjoy and your comments are welcomed.