Take time and care when making spicy pumpkin soup

McClatchy Newspapers (MCT) - I don't know how the Iron Chefs do it.

They scurry around Kitchen Stadium, breaking down carcasses and turning out multi-course meals in less time than it takes for me to put together my food processor.

I know, they're professional chefs who have been at it for years. Still, I'm envious. Every time I try to cook something other than grilled cheese in a limited amount of time, I fall on my face.

Take this week's spicy pumpkin soup. It seemed simple, something I could whip up for a late-night, adults-only dinner after the kids went to bed.

I picked the soup, which I found in "The San Francisco Chronicle Cookbook," because it just oozed fall. Reading the recipe made me think of crisp weather, leaves turning color, loved ones gathered around the table.

It also screamed sophisticated adult dining, something I was craving after a week of tuna sandwiches (my oldest daughter's favorite) for lunch.

Shopping was easy; most of the ingredients are available at the grocery store. I couldn't find the specific type of whole dried chilies the recipe specified (chipotles or New Mexican), so I used New Mexican chili powder instead.

But by the time I got around to making the soup on a Saturday night, nothing about it seemed easy anymore. We already had endured the standard I-don't-want-to-go-to-bed tricks. It was late and we were starving. I would have killed for a frozen pizza.

But my deadline for this column was looming, so I made the soup. I went outside in the dark _ it was raining _ and picked the thyme. I fought with my food processor to grind the almonds.

And, just when it seemed nothing else could go wrong, I got to the part of the recipe where it said to simmer the soup for 20 minutes. Was this a joke? There was no way I was going to wait this long for dinner.

The result? Orange, bumpy, bland soup. It wasn't nearly as spicy as I had thought it would be. Even a hefty spoonful of sour cream on top didn't improve it.

Maybe I should have used more chili powder or gone to another store to find the dried chilies. Maybe I should have started earlier. Maybe I should have let the soup simmer longer.

Maybe next time I should just stick to watching "Iron Chef."

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SPICY PUMPKIN SOUP

Serves: 6

This recipe is from the "The San Francisco Chronicle Cookbook," by by Michael Bauer and Fran Irwin (Chronicle Books, $19.95).

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Ingredients:

1 tablespoon butter

1 onion, chopped

1˝ teaspoons fresh thyme

3 cups steamed and pureed pumpkin or acorn squash, or canned pumpkin puree

2 cups chicken broth, preferably homemade

1 dried chipotle chili, or 2 New Mexican chilies

Salt

Ľ cup finely ground toasted almonds

˝ cup milk

˝ cup cream

Toppings:

Ľ cup snipped chives

6 strips of bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled

1 tablespoon pure red chili powder

1 cup sour cream thinned with 2 tablespoons milk

Instructions:

Heat the butter in a soup pot; add the onion and thyme and saute, stirring, until the onion is translucent, about 10minutes. Transfer to a food processor, add the pumpkin puree and process to a smooth mixture.

Return to the soup pot. Add the broth and the chili (do not break up the chili). Simmer for 20 minutes. The chipotle will add a hint of smoky spiciness to the soup. Season with salt to taste.

Add the ground almonds, then whisk in the milk and cream. Gently simmer for two minutes just to heat and blend flavors. Do not boil. If the soup becomes too thick, add a little more broth or milk.

The soup may be made earlier in the day and reheated just before serving (it will thicken when refrigerated). Remove the chili before serving.

Let diners add toppings of their choice at the table.

Note: If desired, put the mixture of sour cream and milk in a plastic squeeze bottle and drizzle lines across the top of each bowl of soup, then draw a butter knife through the lines to create a decorative pattern.

Per serving: 300 calories; 8 grams protein; 15 grams carbohydrates; 25 grams fat (13saturated); 58 milligrams cholesterol; 174 milligrams sodium; 4 grams fiber.

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Bee staff writer Kerry McCray can be reached at 578-2358 or at kmccray@modbee.com.

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© 2008, The Modesto Bee (Modesto, Calif.).