Some flavours are so great to be paired together, that you just want to give it a try without giving any second thought. This is what happened when I was watching a cooking show on TV a couple of weeks back where a local home baker of Turkish origin was shown baking some pistachio orange syrup cake and then finally serving them with some greek yogurt. …
Roasted Pumpkin & Apple Soup
It is Roasted Pumpkin & Apple Soup, we started our soup season this time, officially. And this one is perfectly placed, as both pumpkin and apples mark the fall season so aptly. As we start nearing winters during the months of late October and early November, I start eating more of soups and some hearty grain warm salads in weekday dinners than my usual Indian fare of chapati and veggies.
Generally, it is mixed veggie soup, which I cook more often, with all the seasonal green vegetables we get during months of winters. To be true, this is a recipe which is out of sheer inspiration, I have been gathering from pinterest these days. I have been spending more time on pinterest than anywhere else, at least in the virtual world.
I have been seeing a lot of pumpkin recipes lately, with halloween just passing by last week. If you ask me, I don’t have any clue, what halloween is all about. Why do people get dressed up in the most creepy way possible. But whatever it is about, it brings a lot of saffron colour all over. It’s a color of courage and happiness, however creepy the festival is. At least, I look at it this way.
I picked up this recipe of roasted pumpkin & apple soup from Katie Quinn Davis and adjusted it to my taste and preferences. It came out beautifully flavored, with a mild sweetness from pumpkin and the little tartness from the granny smith apples. As opposed to topping my soup with crispy bacon, I chose to keep it vegetarian and had it with some fresh tomato and corn salsa.
My local grocer went out of stock for goat cheese, so I substituted it with feta instead. I think, it worked pretty well, considering both goat cheese and feta have got sharp tangy flavor, only difference being in the texture, which didn’t matter once blended into the soup.
It’s a recipe, which I probably keep for the weekends, when I have got enough time to roast the pumpkin and apples. And this one wins my heart truly, with it’s mild and fruity flavor.


- 1kg pumpkin, peeled, seeds removed, cut into 3cm pieces
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 3 tsp chopped mix herbs
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, cut into 3cm pieces
- 1 onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- 5 cups vegetable stock
- 120 gm feta cheese
- Lightly toasted pumpkin seeds and tomato corn salsa, to serve
- Preheat the oven to 180˚C and line a baking tray with baking paper.
- Place the pumpkin, cumin, herbs and 2 tbs oil in a large bowl and season, then toss to combine. Tip onto the tray, arrange in a single layer and roast for 15-20 minutes. Add apple and cook for a further 10 minutes or until tender.
- Meanwhile, heat the remaining 2 tbs oil in the frypan. Add the onion, garlic and a pinch of salt, then cook, stirring, for 3-4 minutes until softened.
- Transfer to a blender with pumpkin mixture, 2 cups stock and half the cheese, then whiz until smooth. Return to pan with remaining 3 cups stock. Cook over medium heat for 15-20 minutes until reduced slightly. Season with salt and freshly crushed black pepper.
- To serve, sprinkle fresh tomato and corn salsa, pumpkin seeds and remaining feta cheese over soup.
Wholewheat Pumpkin Walnut Struesel Cake. Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving to all you lovely readers! Thanks for admiring and to keep coming back here. Your love has been a true inspiration for me and keeps this place buzzing with lot many new recipes every month. And what else could be a better day to express this gratitude.
Two years ago, when I started blogging, I didn’t know that I would’ve come this far. I tried, I failed, I learnt and I finally sailed through and since then I’ve never looked back. My passion for baking at home, and trying new interesting recipes every week has kept growing each passing day. I have lot to learn. And every new like and every humble comment has kept me going with a new energy and excitement every time.
I learnt to celebrate each and every season. Summers marked with stone fruit, Spring with strawberries and Autumn with apples and pears. With holiday season upon us, which started here in India with Diwali, more and more heartwarming, comforting and celebratory recipes keep popping up in every nook and corner of internet. Pinterest is full of inspiration! Wherever you go, whatever you see.
I had a big frozen batch of roasted pumpkin left from the pumpkin maple mascarpone roll, which made few days back. Didn’t want to bake the classic pumpkin pie, because of less time being a weekday{no holiday for us here!}.
So I picked to bake my second most favorite thing after chocolate chip cookie, a struesel coffee cake. I have baked peach coffee cake and sour cream coffee cake before. But this one is exclusive.
With high tones of pumpkin pie spices, hearty wholewheat flour, humble roasted pumpkin puree and warmth of walnut topping, this coffee cake came out to be perfect winner for holiday season. Even good for breakfast too!
Recipe adapted from William Sonoma
Ingredients
For the streusel:
1/3 cup wholewheat flour
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
Pinch of salt
50 gm cold butter, cut into small chunks
1 cup chopped walnuts, lightly toasted
For the batter:
1 cup wholewheat flour
1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
100 gm butter
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup yogurt
For the glaze:
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1 tsp whole milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
Directions
- Preheat an oven to 350°F. Butter and flour a 9-inch springform pan.
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To make the streusel, in a bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt. Toss in the butter and, using 2 table knives or a pastry cutter, cut it into the dry ingredients until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Alternatively, whir the ingredients in a food processor. Stir in the chopped walnuts. Set aside.
- To make the batter, in a bowl, sift together both the flours, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, beat together the butter and brown sugar on medium-high speed until well combined. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Add the pumpkin puree and sour cream and mix with the spatula. Stir in the flour mixture. The batter will be quite thick.
- Spread half of the batter in the prepared pan. Sprinkle half of the streusel over the batter. Dollop the remaining batter over the streusel and spread the thick batter as best you can. Top with the remaining streusel. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 50 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool for about 15 minutes. Remove the sides from the pan and slide the cake onto the rack.
- To make the glaze, in a small bowl, whisk together the confectioners’ sugar, milk and vanilla. Drizzle over the top of the cake. Cut into thick wedges and serve.