Happy Thanksgiving! Buy local, buy handmade, or buy nothing!
Yes, I can criticize Safeway, but I’m still sucked in by their advertising. This billboard has been all over town in the past couple of weeks, so I decided I just had to try making pumpkin soup in a pumpkin shell to bring for Thanksgiving this year.
I waited until the last minute, and then couldn’t find a big enough pumpkin last night at Berkeley Bowl or Whole Foods. So I thought, “Hmm… Safeway’s the one advertising the soup in the pumpkin. They must have the right sized pumpkin.” Turns out, Safeway didn’t have any pumpkins at all. And when I asked a clerk where the pumpkins were, he gave me a really funny face and said, “Lady, Halloween’s been over!”
“I know Halloween’s over,” I protested, “but tomorrow’s Thanksgiving! You don’t have pumpkins for pumpkin pie?”
“Oh! You want the pumpkin in the can!” he exclaimed.
How could I respond? This is the world that Safeway and other mainstream grocery stores have created. Real pumpkins are for jack-o-lanterns and billboards. But we can’t conceive of eating them unless they’ve been processed and canned. So I used a few smaller pumpkins from Whole Foods instead, and I’ll just refill the small pumpkin tureen from the pot. Here’s how my creation turned out:
Let me know if you want the recipe/directions and I’ll post them later. (Regarding the plastic used, one cap from a glass container of Straus organic whipping cream and the plastic coating a 1/2 pint of buttermilk. That’s it.) I’ve got to get ready to leave for our friend’s house.
But before I go, just a few words about tomorrow, “black Friday,” traditionally the biggest shopping day of the year in the U.S. There are movements, as there have been for years, to encourage people to stay home on black Friday and not get sucked into all the consumerist madness.
Tomorrow is officially “Buy Nothing Day” in the U.S. and Canada. The rest of the world celebrates Buy Nothing Day this Saturday. Adbusters has events planned all over the place to protest the shop-til-you-drop mentality.
Melanie Rimmer, a blogger I enjoy reading, has a Make A Gift Challenge on her web site. Staying home and putting together a handmade gift would be a nice way to celebrate Buy Nothing Day.
If you do want to spend money, consider buying handmade items made by craftspeople. Consider signing the Pledge to Buy Handmade this Holiday season.
Etsy has become one of my favorite web sites for finding gifts made by local craftspeople who will respond to my questions and package things the way I’d like them to be packaged. It’s so nice to communicate with a real-live human-being! I’ll write more about the Etsy sellers I’ve enjoyed dealing with later.
Another organization I like to support is Global Exchange. They have three retail stores (San Francisco, Berkeley, Portland) but also sell fair trade handmade gifts online.
What will I be doing tomorrow? Making the rounds of the hood gathering free cat supplies that Freecyclers have so graciously offered to me! Yes, we are still getting a kitten. Maybe two? We have to see if the landlord goes for it.
Hi Mary Grace. I had to do some digging, but here it is. As I recall, I used homemade vegetable broth instead of chicken, regular milk instead of evaporated. Of course, I did NOT use canned pumpkin! And I made my own creme fraiche. Unfortunately, I cannot find the source of this recipe, as I copied it into a Word document for printing two years ago.
HALLOWEEN PARTY RECIPE IDEA, ALSO GREAT FOR THANKSGIVING DINNER Pumpkin Soup Served in a Pumpkin Shell ( Pumpkin Soup Tureen )
Preparing the pumpkin shell:
1. Select a squat pumpkin rather than one that is upright for balance. Field pumpkins used for jack-o-lanterns do not work well. The Cinderella variety or Rouge Vif d’Etampes, as well as many others, has the ideal bowl shape.
2. Start by washing the pumpkin in warm soapy water rinse well and dry.
3. Using a sharp knife, insert the tip about 1/3 of the way down, and cut away the top to form a lid. Scoop out the seeds (reserve for roasting) and stringy mass.
4. Lightly oil the pumpkin inside and out and sprinkle the inside with salt.
5. Place the pumpkin and lid on a parchment lined baking sheet or spray with an oil cooking spray. Bake a 325F for 1 to 1-1/2 hours depending on the size of the shell.
6. This is the tricky part. An over baked shell will not support the weight of the soup so under-baking is preferred. Bake the pumpkin shell until it begins to soften.
7. Remove from the oven and cool.
8. Gently scoop out some of the soft pumpkin from the wall, being careful not to puncture the shell. Scrape the cooked pumpkin from the lid as well. Use this cooked portion for the pumpkin soup recipe that follows or freeze it for later use.
9. Ladle hot soup into the pumpkin and serve. The lid can be used as a cover or you can serve the soup uncovered.
Quick and Easy Creamy Pumpkin Soup
Use your favorite pumpkin soup for the “pumpkin tureen” or use this simple recipe. Although this soup is rich and creamy there is actually no cream in it. The thick body of the soup comes from the pumpkin puree and evaporated skim milk.
* 2 cups finely chopped onions
* 2 green onions, sliced thinly, tops included
* 1/2 cup finely chopped celery
* 1 green chili pepper, chopped
* 1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
* 3 cans chicken broth (14-1/2 oz cans) or 6 cups homemade chicken stock
* 2 cups pumpkin puree or 1 can (16 oz) solid pack pumpkin
* 1 bay leaf
* 1-1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
* 1 cup undiluted, evaporated skim milk
* Salt and pepper to taste (Canned chicken broth and canned pumpkin may contain added salt. Taste the finished soup before adding salt, as additional salt may not be needed.)
* Parmesan cheese and fresh chopped parsley
1. In a 6-quart saucepan, saute onions, green onions, celery and chili pepper in oil. Cook until onions begin to look translucent.
2. Add broth, pumpkin, bay leaf, and cumin. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Remove bay leaf. Add evaporated milk and cook over low heat 5 minutes. Do not boil. Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, if desired.
Transfer hot soup to pumpkin tureen. Garnish with grated Parmesan cheese and chopped parsley. Serve hot. Makes 6 to 8 servings.
Hope this works out for you!
Any chance you still have your pumpkin soup in the shell recipe? Please share if you do!