Pumpkin Curry Soup

Made this soup for my pumpkin dinner party this year and it was so good that as I was eating it I was thinking about how excited I was to make it again. If you like Curry, I'm pretty sure you will love this soup. It was a hit at the party.

Ingredients:

- 2 tsp coconut oil (or extra-virgin olive oil)
- 1 1/2 cups chopped sweet yellow onion (I actually left this out and still really loved the flavor)
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 tbsp minced fresh ginger (I didn't have any of that so I actually just used the dried spice)
- 3 tbsp Thai red curry paste
- 2-3 cups low sodium vegitable broth (or chicken broth)
- 2 tbsp almond butter (or peanut butter)
- 2 cans pure pumpkin puree (15 ounce cans) not pumpkin pie filling
- 1/2 tbsp coconut sugar ( or light brown sugar- which is what I used)
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/8 to 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 can light coconut milk
- For topping chopped roasted peanuts or pipits


Instructions:

1. In a large pot or dutch oven, melt the coconut oil over medium heat. Add the onion and saute for 5 minutes, until translucent. Add the garlic and ginger and cook 1 additional minute, until fragrant. Stir in the Thai curry paste.

2. In a small bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together 1/3 cup of the vegetable broth and the almond butter or peanut butter until smooth. Add the mixture to the pot. Add the pumpkin, coconut sugar (or brown sugar), cumin, salt, pepper, cayenne, and 1 2/3 cups of the reminaing vegetable broth. Stir until well combined.

3. With a blender, puree the soup until completely smooth, adding a little of the coconut milk if it is too thick to blend smoothly.
Alternatively, you can ladle the soup carefully into a blender ot food processor and puree it in small batches. Stir in the remaining coconut milk. If the soup is too thick for your liking, add additional vegetable broth until you reach your desired consistency.
(I actually didn't have to mix in a blender because I didn't have the onions. My soup was already smooth as is, so I just added the coconut milk while the pot was on the stove)

4. Taste and add additional salt, black pepper, and or cayenne pepper as desired. Serve hot with deseired toppings.