Pumpkin patch to plate

There is no shortage of pumpkins in our life. Pumpkin vines have been happily reaching their tendrils across our vegetable garden over the summer and autumn. Duncan consulted a 1989 edition of Peter Cundall's Seasonal Tasks for the Practical Australian Gardener for the best time to cut the pumpkins off the vine, covering the fruit with heavy hessian sacks until the frost started to blacken the leaves. Thanks to the obscuring grass and shading leaves, when Duncan cut the pumpkins and stacked them on our verandah this month, even he was surprised by the bounty. He attributes this to experimenting with pulse watering espoused by Emma Horswill from Earthenry Farm on Jennie Love's The No-Till Flowers Podcast.

Queensland Blue and Ironbark pumpkins are now in full view of the kitchen, which is a convenient reminder to use them in cooking whenever possible. Friends have called into the shop looking for pumpkins to make pumpkin soup for family gatherings, and a bread making workshop. Visiting family left with armfuls of pumpkins. I laughed to myself as I typed an SMS to our neighbours, 'I left a pumpkin in your letterbox.'

The ample pumpkin supply has fortunately coincided with a cold snap. Winter has been slow arriving, but in the past fortnight consecutive heavy frosts have shed the final autumn colour from the pear, medlar and quince trees. There was even snow on the range. 

I revisited Jill Dupleix's Roast pumpkin, red onion and sausage tray bake with tomato salsa for a midweek dinner using our local Crawney's Hills to Grills beef sausages. Jane and Jeremy Strode's Pumpkin curry is a favourite recipe to make this week.

When I found myself at home for the day, I scoured our collection of recipes for pumpkin soup and settle on pumpkin soup with a twist, Belinda Jeffrey's Smoky pumpkin, kidney bean and kale soup. Every Sunday I look forward to seeing Belinda's post on Instagram documenting her travels, farmers' market finds, and seasonal cooking. It's a pleasure to be cooking one of Belinda's recipes, having some insight into her love of homegrown and local produce.

If you don't have pumpkins lined up to be cooked at your kitchen door, look out for roadside stalls. The going farm gate rate is about $5 for a whole pumpkin, which is incredible value, and you cut out all those food miles and plastic packaging. Wins all round. 

Belinda Jeffrey's Smoky pumpkin, kidney bean and kale soup

What you need: 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, 1 large onion, peeled, coarsely chopped, 2 garlic cloves, peeled, finely chopped, 1 small red chilli, finely chopped, 400g bacon bones or 1 ham hock, 1.4kg butternut pumpkin, peeled, deseeded, cut into small chunks, 1 bay leaf, 1 teaspoon sea salt flakes, 150g kale (or substitute greens), washed, stalks removed, roughly chopped, 1 x 400g can red kidney beans (I used dried black beans, boiled in water for 50 minutes until soft), drained, rinsed.

What you do: Warm oil in a large saucepan over low heat. Add onion, garlic and chilli (I used 1/4 teaspoon dried chilli flakes), and cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes or until onion is translucent. Add bacon bones or ham hocks (I used two rashers of bacon cut into batons), pumpkin and bay leaf, then cover with 5 cups of cool water. Add sea salt, cover with a lid and  and bring to boil over a medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer, with lid slightly ajar, for 1 hour. Remove from heat. Remove and discard bacon bones and bay leaf (I removed and set aside bacon batons). Cool slightly.

Use a stick blender to puree soup until smooth in pan. Place pan over a low heat until soup is just bubbling. At this point I returned the bacon batons to the soup. Stir in kale and cook, partly covered, for 20 minutes (if using less course greens, cook for less time, until greens are wilted). Add most of the kidney beans (or black beans if using) after 10 minutes. Garnish with remaining beans and freshly ground black pepper.

Taste soup and season with salt if needed. Ladle into warm bowls and garnish with remaining beans and ground pepper.

For more pumpkin inspiration, explore some of our past blog posts including:

Pumpkin fruitcake

Pumpkin soup for one 

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