Ingredients
- 1 sugar pumpkin or small butternut squash or 1 can pumpkin puree
- Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), for roasting pumpkin or squash, plus 1 tablespoon
- Salt and pepper
- 4 cups chicken or vegetable stock (32 ounces), divided
- 1 large carrot, peeled and chopped
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- Freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon coriander (1/3 palmful)
- 1 teaspoon cumin (1/3 palmful)
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika (1/3 palmful)
- Honey, for drizzling
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 2 cups milk
- 2 cups shredded yellow sharp cheddar cheese
- 2 small chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, seeded and finely chopped, plus 1 rounded tablespoon of adobo sauce
- Unsalted crispy yellow or blue corn tortilla chips
- Toasted pumpkin seeds, for garnish
Directions
- If using fresh pumpkin or squash, pre-heat the oven to 425°F.
- Peel, seed and chop the pumpkin or squash, coat with EVOO, salt and pepper and roast to tender, 45 minutes. If using canned pumpkin puree, skip these steps.
- Heat 1 tablespoon EVOO in a soup pot over medium-high heat. Sauté the carrot and onion to tender, about 10 minutes. Season with nutmeg, cinnamon, coriander, cumin, paprika, a drizzle of honey, salt and pepper, to taste. Toast the spices, about 1 minute.
- Add the carrot and onion along with the roasted pumpkin or squash to the bowl of a food processor and puree with a splash of stock. If using canned pumpkin, puree the onion and carrot together with some stock and stir in the canned pumpkin to combine.
- Wipe out the soup pot and return to the heat. Melt the butter; whisk in the flour, then milk. Season with salt and pepper and thicken to coat a spoon. Stir in the cheese to melt, then add the chipotle and adobo sauce. Stir in the remaining stock and squash or pumpkin puree. Let simmer to thicken the soup.
- Place a few crushed tortillas in a shallow bowl and top with soup; mix the tortillas into the soup as you eat. Garnish with toasted pumpkin seeds on top.