Friday, October 9, 2009

A Recipe for Pumpkin Soup Could Make Your Meal

By Kc Kudra

More and more people are learning about the benefits of eating seasonally - choosing your ingredients when they're naturally in season - and how this practice can help us have better food and stay in touch with the natural world. While technological advances in agriculture mean that we can enjoy strawberries in December in the Northern Hemisphere, it does not ensure that this produce is high in quality. Everyone who has ever eaten a tough, tasteless winter tomato is aware that being able to grow it does not mean the food will be great.

This is one reason that so many people have begun to pay attention to when and where their food is produced. After all, in season, produce tastes better, plus it is better for you, too. It can be frustrating to need to wait for your favorite foods to be ready, but the taste and quality of these foods is worth it.

Once you realize that the foods you eat in season are the foods that taste best, you will give up on eating them at the wrong times of year. After all, most of us do not really like winter peaches. Try foods when they are meant to grow, and realize what a difference in taste that makes.

For fall, there are all kinds of great options that do not get a lot of attention. Fresh corn and new potatoes come in at summer's end, and as the autumn continues, you will get to enjoy nuts in season, hard winter squash, and the familiar pumpkins. If you have been making all your pumpkin pies out of a can, and you do not think much about this great vegetable beyond that, it might be time to think again.

Pumpkin is not just attractive, but a delicious, good for you choose with plenty of vitamin content and lots of fiber. In addition, this vegetable is easy to cook and works in dishes of all kinds - not just Thanksgiving and Halloween desserts. Make sure you eat pumpkin all autumn long.

This big orange squash relative is great roasted, sliced thin and sauteed with other vegetables, and makes wonderful soups, too. Recipes for creamy pumpkin soups offer a rich addition to your table that does not have to be too sweet. The flavors of roasted garlic and strong cheeses combine well with pumpkin, as do spices normally considered "sweet," like ginger and clove.

If you are willing to be a little bit adventurous with your pumpkin, you will be rewarded with great results in the form of stews and soups, chilies, curries, baked dishes and a whole lot more. As a main dish or as a side, pumpkin cannot be beat.

If you are tired of the same old lackluster meals, it might be time to begin eating seasonally. You will discover all kinds of foods you had forgotten about, including pumpkin. Try a great pumpkin soup recipe this fall, and see what a difference it will make. You will love experimenting with new flavors!

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