Although I made this soup the other day, I felt it was fitting to post it today since today marks the beginning of October.  Happy October 1st!  I automatically associate all things fall – leaves turning, pumpkin patches, hayrides, HALLOWEEN (one of my favorite holidays by the way) – with October including the color orange!  I developed this Easy, Creamy, Spicy Pumpkin Soup solely based on my memory of what it tasted like when we had a fabulous serving of pumpkin soup served to us in Jamaica… Although this soup wasn’t as good (probably because I didn’t use the necessary cream & rum that they did), it was still delicious & definitely an all-around winner when you’re looking for a hearty, filling soup!  Bill was surprisingly a fan of this soup – so I’m confident you will like it as well being as how he is a “meat & potatoes” kind of guy!  We have some leftovers which are tucked away in our freezer that I’m excited about ~ I think next time I have the soup, I may try to add some crushed red pepper and hot sauce to it to give it some kick!

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 15-ounce can of plain pumpkin (not sweetened)
• 2 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
• 1.5 cups skim milk
• 2 Medium to Large Sweet Potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 1 tbsp cumin
• Ground sea salt and black pepper
• Dash of Parsley

Directions

Using a medium to large-sized saucepan on medium heat, pour 1 tbsp olive oil in bottom of pan.  Add in pumpkin, broth, milk, and cumin, whisking well.  Then, add in chopped sweet potatoes and bring mixture to a simmer. Simmer for about 20-25 minutes or until sweet potatoes are soft to the touch.  Using immersion blender, blend soup well until all chunks of sweet potatoes are well-blended and essentially disappear!  Sprinkle salt in and mix well.  Remove the pan from the stove and and serve in bowls.  Sprinkle black pepper and parsley on top of individual servings.

And this delicious & totally vibrant bowl is the end result:

ENJOY!