A Creamy Greek-Style Pumpkin Soup Your Kids Will Love

I once heard someone say that “The weather in Michigan is just like my mood, it changes everyday.”

They weren’t kidding.

We have been in Michigan for 3 months and have been enjoying a beautiful summer. But this week it feels like we’re in the middle of winter and have skipped Fall completely. With all this rainy, wet weather, the kids and I decided it was time to fill our home with Fall decorations, which included 8 pumpkins…to remind us that October is just around the corner.

Our culinary worldschooling program this month is about the country Greece.

Surprisingly, we learned the word pumpkin originated from the Greek word, Pepon, which means large melon. The word eventually morphed into what it is today by the French, English, and Americans. Believed to have originated from ancient America, pumpkins were a crooked-neck variety and not like the pumpkin you’re used to seeing at local supermarkets today.

Pumpkins are synonymous with Fall vegetables and are traditionally used for sweet and savory dishes in Greece. In parts of the country pumpkin is deep fried and served as an appetizer with tzatziki. Pumpkin pies are also very popular in Northern and Central parts of Greece, where they use savory cheese and spices such as cinnamon or cloves to create ancient recipes passed down from their ancestors. Made with phyllo pastry, Lesvos Kolokythopita is a wonderful savory pumpkin pie from Epirus in the North Western region of Greece.

With all those pumpkins sitting in our house we decided to make a Creamy Greek-Style Pumpkin Soup recipe we found by GAEA, one of the top-quality producers of Greek olive oil in the world.

Since the Minoan era, almost 5000 ago, the extended sunshine, the mountainous grounds and rich soils of Crete, have provided a unique microclimate for the cultivation of olive trees. Obtained directly from handpicked renowned “Koroneiki” variety olives, this cold extracted superior category olive oil carries the unique combination of a harmonious taste with a fruity & slightly peppery aroma.

Gaea’s Creamy Greek-Style Pumpkin Soup

INGREDIENTS

• 4 cups pumpkin, peeled, seeded, and chopped
• 1 cup red pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 cup zucchini, chopped
• 1 cup yellow onions, chopped
• 1⁄2 cup celery with stem, chopped
• 6 to 7 tablespoons Gaea Sitia Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1⁄2 cup toasted pumpkin seeds
• 1 cup crumbled goat cheese (or hard cheese)
• 2 teaspoons fresh grated ginger

INSTRUCTIONS

Place the chopped pumpkin, zucchini, onions and celery in a large soup pot and add the vegetable stock until at least half the vegetables are covered.

Bring the broth to a boil then let simmer over
low heat for 30 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the soup cool to room temperature before pureeing vegetable and broth in a blender.

Add 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil to the pureed mixture and return the soup to the pot and let simmer for 15 minutes before serving in individual soup bowls. Top each serving with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and the pumpkin seeds, crumbled cheese, and ginger.

It’s healthy, delicious, and a festive recipe to try at home for a cozy fall dish. We absolutely loved trying Gaea’s olive oil, which you can purchase here. Let us know what you think of this creamy greek-style pumpkin soup recipe in the comments below!

Disclaimer: We received a complimentary sample of Gaea’s Extra Virgin Olive Oil to taste test. However, as always, all opinions expressed on the blog are our own.