If you’ve never tried roasted lavender buds, Fall is the time to enjoy their nutty, unique flavor in seasonal root vegetable dishes. It is a delicate flavor that is enhanced nicely by garlic and a bit of nutmeg in this recipe for Pumpkin Soup.
Pumpkin soup is best made with roasted pumpkin. You can use a couple of cans of pumpkin puree instead.
This recipe is vegan but you can use cream in place of coconut milk if you like.
To roast a pumpkin, cut a 3 pound sugar pumpkin (also called a pie pumpkin) in half and scoop out the pulp and seeds. Place the pumpkin halves face down on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 45-50 minutes. You’ll know it’s done when the skin is tender when pierced with a fork. Let the pumpkin cool before handling. The skin will separate easily from the flesh of the pumpkin.
Ingredients
- 1) 3lb sugar pumpkin, roasted and cooled or 2) 14oz cans of pumpkin puree
- 3 TBSPs of coconut or olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves of garlic, diced
- 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg
- 1 TBSP roasted culinary lavender buds
- 1 tsp salt
- dash of cayenne
- black pepper
- 3 cups vegetable broth
- 1) 8oz can unsweetened coconut milk
Instructions
Heat the oil in a heavy bottomed soup pan. Add the onion and garlic and saute until translucent and soft.
Add the roasted pumpkin flesh and break it up a bit with a wooden spoon. Add the nutmeg, roasted lavender buds, salt, pepper and cayenne. Pour in the vegetable broth. Bring the mixture to a boil, then turn down the heat and simmer for 15 minutes to allow the flavors to meld. Take off the heat and add the can of unsweetened coconut milk.
Use an immersion blender to cream the ingredients together. Taste and adjust the seasoning. When you are ready to serve, return the soup to the stove and heat carefully. This recipe makes 4 to 6 bowls of soup.
If you are a purist, you may want to grind the roasted lavender buds in an herb grinder or you can use a mortar and pestle to grind it to a powder. I don’t mind seeing some flecks of roasted lavender for a more rustic look to my soup.
