Miso Pumpkin Soup

I've made this soup 3 times already, so I'm not really sure why it's taken so long for me to post about it.  I first bookmarked this recipe from The Kitchn when I was trying to find ways to use up a sugar pumpkin and sweet potatoes.  Every time I've made it since I've done something a little different--used acorn squash instead of pumpkin, substituted ground ginger for fresh ginger or fried shallots instead of fresh shallots--and it still comes out great.  There's just something so warm and cozy about this combination of flavors and colors.

I like to save the pumpkin seeds and roast them with some olive oil and Old Bay seasoning.  They add a nice crunch if you add them as a topping to the soup but are perfect for just snacking on, too.  I also like the suggestion from The Kitchn of garnishing with chopped scallions, ichimi togarashi, and toasted sesame seeds.  The red pepper flakes kick up the warming factor of the soup without being obnoxiously spicy.

Miso Pumpkin Soup (adapted from The Kitchn)
serves 4

2 lbs. sugar pumpkin or acorn squash
1 lb. sweet potatoes
4 garlic cloves, peeled
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon fried shallots
1 teaspoon powdered ginger
3 tablespoons white miso
6 cups vegetable or chicken stock

Preheat oven to 450°F.

Cut the pumpkin or squash in half and remove the seeds and pulp with a metal spoon.  Peel the pumpkin and cut into 2-inch pieces.

Peel and cut the sweet potatoes into 2-inch pieces.

Combine the pumpkin, sweet potatoes, and garlic on a baking sheet, toss with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Roast in the oven until the pumpkin and sweet potatoes are tender when pierced, about 30 minutes, tossing halfway through.

Add the fried shallots, ground ginger, miso, and vegetable stock to a large pot and stir until dissolved.  Add the roasted vegetables and simmer for 15 minutes.  Turn down the heat if necessary to avoid boiling, as this can impair the flavor of the miso.

Puree the soup using an immersion blender.  To serve, garnish with roasted pumpkin seeds or with chopped scallions, ichimi togarashi, and toasted sesame seeds.

Next:  Sticky Toffee Pudding Ice Cream
Previously:  Thai Coconut Sticky Rice with Mango
One Year Ago:  Momofuku Ramen Broth
Four Years Ago:  Wah Guay (Taiwanese Rice Cake with Meat Sauce)
Five Years Ago:  Pork and Cabbage Dumplings

Kale and Sweet Potato Soup

I had gotten a bunch of kale and 2 sweet potatoes in my Boston Organics delivery and decided I wanted to make a soup out of them. After a quick search on-line, I found this recipe by Joy the Baker.  I just happened to already have all the other ingredients on hand, too, so I think it was meant to be.

This soup is perfect on a cold, dreary night with it's super colorful vegetables and warm, spicy broth.  Served over a bed of brown rice, it can be a meal all on its own, too.

 
Kale and Sweet Potato Soup (adapted from Joy the Baker)
serves 4-6

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, chopped fine
1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger
3/4 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon crushed red peppers (optional)
1 bunch kale, tough stems removed and roughly chopped
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and diced into 1/2-inch cubes
1 1/2 quart chicken or vegetable broth
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Fresh ground pepper, to taste
1 can coconut milk
2 cups cooked brown rice

In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Add the onions and cook down until tender and translucent, about five minutes.  Add the garlic, ginger, turmeric, and crushed red pepper flakes, if using.  Cook, stirring, for about 1 minute.

 
Add the sweet potato chunks and stir.  Add the chicken or vegetable broth and bring to a simmer.

 
Add the kale once the broth is simmering and submerge all of the leaves, helping them to cook down.  Cook for about 20 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes have become tender.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

 
Lastly, stir in coconut milk and heat through.  Serve over a bed of brown rice.

 
The soup freezes well, and I found the best way to cool it down quickly was to stick the pot straight in the snow.

 
Next:  Peking Duck Pizza
Previously:  Cauliflower Steak with Cauliflower Purée
Three years ago:  Bacon Caramel Corn
Four years ago:  Wok-Fried Edamame with Garlic, Panna Cotta, Take 1

Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Maple Cinnamon Sage Brown Butter

I had two sweet potatoes left from my Boston Organics delivery, so I decided to try to make sweet potato gnocchi. The only other time I had ever made gnocchi was when I made the ricotta gnocchi for the Daring Cooks challenge back in May. That was definitely a pretty complicated recipe, but the sweet potato gnocchi recipe in Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything was a lot simpler.

That recipe didn't mention what sauce to pair with the gnocchi, though, so I turned to Google for some inspiration. The first hit for a search for "sweet potato gnocchi" was Giada's "Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Maple Cinnamon Sage Brown Butter". Can you say yum?

Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Maple Cinnamon Sage Brown Butter (based on Mark Bittman's recipe in How to Cook Everything and Giada De Laurentiis' recipe here)
makes 3-4 servings

1 lb. sweet potatoes (about 2)
Salt and pepper
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup butter
15 fresh sage leaves
2 teaspoons maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 dash nutmeg

Start boiling a pot of water.

Peel the sweet potatoes and cut into small 1" chunks. Place in a microwaveable bowl with a little water and cover. Microwave for five minutes or until the sweet potatoes are done. Drain, season with salt and pepper, and mash with a fork.

Add about a half cup of the flour and stir. Continue adding the flour in small increments until you get a dough that you can handle. You want to add as little flour as possible to keep the gnocchi from being too dense. Pinch off a small piece and drop into boiling water to make sure it will keep its shape.

Place the dough onto a floured counter top (or cutting board). Divide in half and roll each piece into a 1/2 inch wide snake. Cut the dough into 1 inch long pieces and roll over the tines of a fork. Place shaped pieces onto a floured plate without them touching one another.

Cook the gnocchi in the boiling water in batches. You don't want there to be more gnocchi in the pot than can cover the surface of the water. The gnocchi is done about a minute after it starts floating.

While the gnocchi is cooking, melt the butter in a separate small saucepan. Once it is melted, add the sage leaves and continue to cook until the milk solids in the butter have browned. Remove from heat and add the maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt to taste.

Toss the cooked gnocchi with the browned butter sauce and serve hot.

Leftovers can be refrigerated and pan-fried the next day for a slightly different texture.

I found dough could be quite sticky and gluey before I finally added enough flour for it to be workable. In hindsight, I probably should have drained the potatoes better before adding the dough. While this gnocchi was considerably heavier than the ricotta gnocchi I had made before, it was still a lot lighter than say, the big, thick Shanghainese and Korean rice cakes. The gnocchi itself didn't have much flavor, but the brown butter sauce more than made up for that. I really liked how the sage and maple syrup brought out the flavor of the sweet potatoes. What kind of surprised me was that I actually wanted to add a little more black pepper to this dish even though I normally don't really like black pepper.

I had some leftovers, which I pan-fried in the butter sauce (no additional oil needs to be added), although I removed most of the sage first and added it back in when the gnocchi was almost done so that it didn't burn. While I did like the light crispiness the pan-frying added to the gnocchi, I think it was better overall when it was fresh.

One year ago:  Scallion Pancakes