Recipes from professional Chef Tallyrand:

• Pumpkin Soup 'Aotearoa' •

A favourite soup in New Zealand (Aotearoa), the recipe may also be used for kumara soup. Kumara being Maori for sweet potato - simply replace the pumpkin with kumara.

Ingredients

butter	50	gm
bacon or smoked ham trimmings (optional)	25	gm
onion	75	gm
celery	75	gm
flour	50	gm
pumpkin	400	gm
white stock (chicken or vegetable)	1	lt
bouquet garni	1	pc
seasoning		sq

Method

1. Melt the butter in a thick bottom pan
2. Add the bacon, roughly chopped vegetables and cook without colour for 5 minutes
3. Mix in the flour and cook out without colour for 5 minutes
4. Add the pumpkin (cut into 2 cm cubes)
5. Remove from the heat and gradually add the warmed stock
6. Stir to the boil and add the bouquet garni, season lightly
7. Simmer for 1 hour, stirring and skimming occasionally to remove any scum that might come to the surface
8. Pass firmly through a chinois or purée in a liquidiser
9. Return soup to a clean pan, bring to the boil, correct seasoning and consistency
   

Chef's Tip:

For a pumpkin soup with a little bit extra add one of or a combination of the following:

• two cloves of crushed garlic
• three whole roasted garlic cloves
• 100 gm of strong cheddar
• 175ml of orange juice reduced down to 50 ml

Serve with slices of toasted French bread (baguette), either one or
a combination) of the following:

• drizzled with olive oil and rubbed with garlic
• topped with sundried tomatoes
• with melted cheese of choice

Enjoy and bon appetit . . . . .

Published 01 March 2004