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Velvety Soups

17/11/2023

Velvety is a type of creamy and smooth soup, precisely, that can be prepared with different types of vegetables. Here I present to you a basic recipe, the pumpkin velvety soup, which is full of taste and comfort, perfect for colder days. Later, I’ll explain how to vary the recipe with other vegetables.

Ingredients

  • 800 g of cleaned pumpkin
  • 1 medium-sized potato
  • 1 white onion
  • 500 ml of vegetable broth
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • (Optional) Cream or milk to thicken
  • (Optional) Pumpkin seeds or croutons for garnish

Preparation

  1. Clean and cut the pumpkin into pieces, peel the potato and cut it into cubes.
  2. Finely chop the onion and sauté with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil in a large pot until it becomes transparent.
  3. Add the pumpkin and potato to the onion, let it flavor for a few minutes.
  4. Pour the vegetable broth into the pot and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, cover with a lid, and let it cook for about 20-30 minutes or until the pumpkin and potato have softened.
  5. With an immersion blender, blend all the ingredients directly in the pot until you obtain a smooth and homogeneous cream.
  6. Adjust with salt and pepper and, if you wish, you can add some cream or milk to make the velvety soup even creamier.
  7. Cook the velvety soup for another 5 minutes, then serve hot with a drizzle of raw oil and, if you like, garnish with toasted pumpkin seeds or croutons.

Variations:

To make velvety soups with other vegetables, follow the same procedure by substituting the pumpkin with the selected vegetable, for example, broccoli, carrots, peas, or asparagus. Each vegetable will give the velvety soup a unique flavor.

Curiosity

Pumpkin is notoriously rich in beta-carotene, useful for the health of the eyes and skin. The tradition of using pumpkin in cream dates back to ancient times. Every Italian region has its own variant of pumpkin velvety soup, with small additions and modifications that make it unique.

If you have other vegetables available or have particular dietary preferences, just let me know and I can recommend other tasty velvety soups!

Velvety Soups