Pumpkin & Sweet Potato Soup with Brittle

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1) To make your brittle, line a baking sheet with tin foil and spray lightly with cooking spray.  Put to the side.

2)  Combine the sugar, lemon juice, and½ cup water in a large stock pot. Heat over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until the sugar is dissolved. Cook until the mixture turns amber gold color.  This will take about 6-8 minutes.  Add the butter and stir well.  Next, add the pumpkin seeds and mix into the liquid. Pour the hot brittle mixture onto your prepared baking sheet, sprinkle with flaky salt.  Let this cool completely (about 1 hour).  Chop the brittle into small bite-size pieces that will be sprinkled on the finished soup.  Put to the side.

3) Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large dutch oven over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and sweet potatoes, and cook for 15 minutes, until the sweet potatoes are starting to soften. Add the garlic, a large pinch each of salt and pepper, and the nutmeg and cook for another couple of minutes. Add the pumpkin puree and cook for another 5 minutes. Add the miso, sherry vinegar and stock and stir well to combine. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat.  Simmer until the sweet potatoes are easily pierced with a fork or tip of a knife.

3) Using an immersion blender, blend the soup until smooth and creamy. Alternatively, work in batches and blend the soup in a blender until smooth and return to the pot. Spoon into bowls and serve topped with a dollop of the yogurt (or drizzle on a loosened yogurt – mix with a little skim milk and put in a squeeze bottle. Shake and drizzle on the soup), and a sprinkle of the chopped brittle.

NOTES: Everyone should have a savory pumpkin soup in their arsenal of tricks. It is perfect in the fall and during the holidays. Served in cute pumpkin cocottes, my pumpkin and sweet potato soup with brittle is a show-stopper.  This recipe is inspired by one I found on zwilling.com.

I adapted it to my liking and simplified it by using canned pumpkin puree.  A quick note here:  Pumpkin puree is NOT pumpkin pie filling so when you are shopping, be sure to check the can’s label and look for plain pumpkin puree. Libby makes a good one.

I also cut the amount of oil used, swapped out creme fraiche for fat-free Greek yogurt and changed up the brittle.  The soup is amazing.  I love the mix of sweet potatoes and pumpkin, and my favorite part is this a rich, thick and creamy soup without any of the extra fat, heavy cream or calorie packed items you’d expect in a soup like this.  This soup is actually a healthy choice.  Yes, I’ve added the candied brittle, but just a sprinkle makes a big difference on this soup and well worth the indulgence.

To get started, make your brittle.  I used only pumpkin seeds in my brittle but you could use any seed or nut combination you like.  You might want to try:

.  sunflower seeds

.  sesame seeds

. toasted and chopped walnuts

.  almond slivers

How to make pumpkin seed brittle

I’d use what every seed or nut is your favorite or create a unique mix.  Just remember to use a cup.  What I really like about this recipe is that you are not worrying about using a thermometer but with that said, you do have to watch your boiling sugar water/lemon mixture and continue stirring so it doesn’t get to dark and/or burn.  Watch as it starts to turn color, watch until it is a golden brown color and immediately add the butter and seeds and/or nuts.  Stir once or twice and immediately pour on the prepared baking sheet.

Using a spatula, spread out the brittle mixture and put it to the side to completely cool and solidify.  This will take up to an hour.  Once cooled and solid, you can chop it up and keep it in an airtight container until ready to use.  Do not refrigerator (the brittle will get sticky).  You can make this days in advance making this perfect for the holidays since the soup can be made ahead of time too.

How to make the sweet potato and pumpkin soup

Then, it is time to make the soup.  Because we are using canned pumpkin puree, this couldn’t be easier.  Simply add the olive oil to a large dutch oven and add the chopped onions and sweet potatoes.  Let that cook together for about 15 minutes until the onions are soft and translucent and the sweet potatoes are starting to soften.

Then, add your smashed garlic cloves, a large pinch of salt and pepper and grate nutmeg into the pot.  Note, yes, you can use nutmeg from the can but if you haven’t tried freshly grating your nutmeg, you don’t know what you are missing.  The flavor is so much more subtle and distinctly different.  You can buy a small bag of whole nutmeg at the grocery store and just grate on a fine grater or rasp.

Stir all of this together an cook for a couple of minutes.  Add the pumpkin and stir into the veggies.  Let heat through for about five minutes.

Add the miso, sherry vinegar and vegetable broth.  Stir everything together.  Bring to a boil and then lower to a simmer.  You want to cook until you can easily pierce the sweet potato with a tip of a knife.  When you can, it is time to blend the soup.

I use an immersion blender to whip it all together in the pot.  You can also ladle the soup into a blender in batches and blend.  Simply add the blended soup back to the pot.  Remember, do not completely fill your blender with the hot soup.  Hot liquid expands and you don’t want it overflowing.  Hold a towel firmly over the top of the blender to prevent unexpected accidents.  This method works just fine and I used it for years.  Once I got my immersion blender, there was no looking back.  It just made my life a lot easier.

Once the soup is completely smooth, taste it and adjust the salt and pepper as needed.  Once it is just right, you are ready to serve.

I use fat-free Greek yogurt on top of the soup.  You can just put a dollop on top but I’ll the yogurt in a squirt bottle, along with the whey that floats of top of the yogurt.  I want the consistency to be liquid enough to drizzle on the soup so if needed, I’ll add a little skim milk to the squeeze bottle, put on the lid and shake.  It is now ready for the soup.

I serve the soup in pumpkin cocottes (so cute) and drizzle on the yogurt and sprinkle the top of the soup with some of the crunchy, sweet and salty brittle.  Talk about the perfect bite!  I hope you love this soup as much as I do.

Be sure to check out my Thanksgiving Menu for Two and my traditional Thanksgiving Menu for other recipes to round out your holiday meal.

Looking for other soup recipes?  Be sure to try some of my favorites:

Spring Peas, Shrimp and Lobster Soup

Beef, Vegetable and Barley Soup

Shrimp & Lobster Corn Chowder

Spinach & Cheese Tortellini Soup

Cream of Mushroom Soup En Croute