Spooky Creamy Pumpkin Soup
This Spooky Creamy Pumpkin Soup is the perfect soup to celebrate Halloween. It’s rich, thick, creamy and delicious. With a few seasonal spices, it’s a fall soup that you can really dig into. See all my tips below for getting the cobweb design on top, then dig in!
This is such an easy soup, and you only need a handful of ingredients. With a bright orange color and plenty of fall flavors, it’s a terrific soup for your Halloween feast, or whenever you want something delicious on the table.
Making the cobweb design isn’t hard. You’ll just need a zipper top bag and a toothpick. Scroll down for full instructions.
Ingredients
- Butter – I almost always cook with salted butter, but you can use unsalted.
- Onion – Yellow or white both work. You want to avoid using red onion as it’ll color the soup.
- Garlic – Freshly minced for best flavor. Don’t use jarlic; it just doesn’t have the punchy flavor you need.
- Pumpkin puree – Use plain pumpkin puree, not pie filling.
- Vegetable broth – To keep this soup vegetarian, you can use vegetable broth. Chicken broth or stock will also work.
- Heavy whipping cream – Makes the texture velvety and adds a touch of richness.
- Kosher salt – I always cook with kosher salt, but you can use table salt. If you do, just reduce the amount by about half and then season before serving.
- Black pepper – Freshly ground adds a light kick.
- Ground nutmeg – Use freshly ground nutmeg. I buy whole nutmeg and grind it with a microplane grater. It has so much more flavor doing it this way!
- Ground cinnamon – A touch of cinnamon adds such a lovely warm flavor to this soup.
- Pepitas – Or pumpkin seeds. Optional garnish
- Sour cream – To make the optional swirl.
How To Make Creamy Pumpkin Soup
Scroll down for the full recipe card with exact measurements and printable instructions.
In a large pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Once hot, add the chopped onion and sauté until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. I like using a soup pot with measurement marks inside so I can build the soup without dirtying extra tools. Add the garlic and cook for another 30 seconds, just until fragrant.
Stir in the pumpkin puree, stock, cream, salt, pepper, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Mix well. A flat-bottomed whisk is perfect for making sure everything blends smoothly and for breaking up any thicker spots in the puree. Bring the soup to a gentle simmer and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring now and then so nothing sticks.
Once everything is heated through and the flavors have developed, use a variable-speed immersion blender to puree the soup directly in the pot. It’s one of my favorite tools because it lets you control the texture and skip the mess of transferring to a countertop blender.
Ladle the soup into bowls and finish each one with a swirl of cream. To make the swirl, mix 1/4 cup of sour cream with about 2 tablespoons of heavy whipping cream. Add this to a piping bag with a small tip, or put it into a zipper top bag and make a tiny cut at one corner of the bag to make a hole.
Make a swirl on top of the bowl of soup, then drag a toothpick through it to make the lines. Sprinkle with some pumpkin seeds and you’re all done!
Chef Jenn’s Tips
- Let the soup simmer on low so the flavors can gently build without boiling.
- Taste the soup before blending to see if you want to adjust the salt or add a little more spice.
- For a dairy-free version, substitute the cream with full-fat coconut milk.
- Use an immersion blender to keep cleanup easy and the blending process smooth.
Recommended
Make It A Meal
Pair this soup with warm sourdough, cornbread, or a simple arugula salad with apples and toasted seeds. It also goes perfectly with a grilled cheese or turkey sandwich on the side.
Storage
Let the soup cool completely before transferring to containers. Store in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 2 months. To reheat, warm gently over low heat, stirring occasionally. If the soup thickens in the fridge, just add a splash of broth or cream to loosen it up.
Creamy Pumpkin Soup with Canned Pumpkin
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 2 to 3 cloves garlic minced
- 28 ounces pumpkin puree or 2 14-ounce cans
- 2 ½ to 3 cups vegetable stock or chicken stock
- ½ cup heavy cream plus more for topping
- 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup sour cream optional garnish
- 2 tablespoons cream or water optional – for the swirl
- 1/4 cup pepitas optional garnish
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat and cook the onion until soft, about 6-8 minutes.
- Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Stir in the pumpkin puree, stock, cream, salt, pepper, nutmeg, and cinnamon and simmer with the lid on for about 15 minutes. Stir occassionally.
- Blend the soup using an immersion blender until smooth.
- Serve hot with a swirl of sour cream and pepitas on top if desired.
Notes
Chef Jenn’s Tips
- Let the soup simmer on low so the flavors can gently build without boiling.
- Taste the soup before blending to see if you want to adjust the salt or add a little more spice.
- For a dairy-free version, substitute the cream with full-fat coconut milk and use olive oil instead of butter.
- Use an immersion blender to keep cleanup easy and the blending process smooth.
