Have you heard the saying: What grows together goes together? It’s almost always true.

So it’s often where I start for inspiration. And thus one glorious Pacific Northwest fall afternoon THIS happened.

I was perusing the rows of produce at Portland Farmers Market on a particularly fine Saturday morning and spotted a large basket loaded with small pumpkins. Nestled next to the basket was a heap of green tomatoes. I stood there, looking back and forth. Pumpkin. Green tomato. Pumpkin. Green tomato. And the question arose: Why not?

As it turns out, amazingly, pumpkin and tomato are a flavor match made in heaven. Pumpkin is mild, sweet and creamy, while tomato is intense, tart, and juicy. Yin and Yang (complementary and at the same time opposing forces that interact to form a dynamic system in which the whole is greater than the assembled parts.) Each partner contributing what the other needs.

And unripe, GREEN tomato has even more acidity than ripe, red tomato, plus a lovely flavor all its own. I was hooked on the idea, even though I had never used green tomatoes in a soup before.

But there’s more. Namely an evocative Moroccan spice blend I’ve grown to love over the years called Ras el Hanout, a blend of SIXTEEN exotic spices. PLUS fresh ginger, chiles, and garlic. It’s the perfect underpinning to the pumpkin, tomato pairing.

The resulting soup is divine, either hot or cold. As with most soups, it’s even better a day or two after it’s made.

Want to know more about winter squash? Check out Winter Squash Primer on our sister blog, LunaCafe.

More Winter Squash, Sweetpotato & Carrot Soups on LunaCafe

In most cases, winter squash (Butternut Squash, Red Kuri Squash, Sugar Pumpkin., Red Kabocha Squash), sweet potatoes, carrots, and pumpkin are interchangeable in soup recipes specifying one or the other. I often blend two or more.

Pumpkin Green Tomato Soup

As with most soups where winter squash has the starring role, pumpkin soups are often too sweet, too bland, or both. What is usually needed is a judicious jolt of something acidic, such as lemon, lime, vinegar, apple, tomato, or in this case, green tomato. Acid helps to balance the sweetness of the pumpkin and creates interest for the palate.

Print Recipe

Course Soup

Cuisine American, East Indian, Moroccan

Servings 8 servings

Ingredients

neutral cooking oil canola, safflower, corn
1 pound sugar or pie pumpkin, stemmed, cut into wedges lengthwise, and seeded
1 tablespoon LunaCafe Ras el Hanout spice blend or Madras brand curry powder
3 cups peeled, finely chopped yellow onion (1 large onion)
3 tablespoons peeled, minced fresh ginger
6 large cloves garlic, peeled, and minced
1-2 jalapeno chiles, stemmed, seeded, ribbed, and minced (use gloves)
1 pound peeled, stemmed, chopped, ripe tomatoes
1 pound peeled, stemmed chopped, green tomatoes
6 cups vegetable or chicken stock
1 cup heavy cream

Finishing

2 teaspoons fine sea salt, plus more to taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
freshly squeezed lemon juice, to taste, optional

Garnish

Goat Cheese Crema
Green Tomato Pico de Gallo (coming soon)

Instructions

As with most soups where winter squash has the starring role, pumpkin soups tend to be too sweet, too bland, or both. What is usually needed is a judicious jolt of something acidic, such as lemon, lime, vinegar, apple, tomato, or in this case, green tomato. The acid helps to balance the sweetness of the pumpkin and creates interest for the palate.
Makes 10-12 cups; serves 6-8.
neutral cooking oil
1 pound pumpkin, stemmed, cut into wedges lengthwise, and seeded
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon LunaCafe Ras el Hanout spice blend or Madras brand curry powder
3 cups, peeled, finely chopped yellow onion (1 large onion)
3 tablespoon peeled, minced fresh ginger
6 large cloves garlic, peeled, and minced
1-2 jalapeno chiles, stemmed, seeded, ribbed, and minced (use gloves)
1 pound peeled, stemmed, chopped, ripe tomatoes1 pound peeled, stemmed chopped, green tomatoes
6 cups vegetable or chicken stock
1 cup heavy cream
Finishing
2 teaspoons fine sea salt, plus more to taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
freshly squeezed lemon juice, optional
Garnish
Goat Cheese Crema
Green Tomato Pico de Gallo (coming soon)
To prepare baking sheet, lightly coat an edged baking sheet with cooking oil.
To roast pumpkin, arrange cut-side-up in a single layer on the baking sheet, and roast at 375°F for 35-45 minutes, until fully tender.
To prepare soup base, in an 8-quart soup pot, over medium-low heat, melt butter, and slowly cook onion until softened, but not browned, about 15 minutes.
During the last 5 minutes, add Ras el Hanout, garlic, ginger, and chiles. Remove from the heat, and hold until pumpkin is fully tender.
To peel pumpkin, when pumpkin is tender and cool enough to handle, scrape it away from its skin into the soup pot. Don’t worry if it’s in big chunks. The chunks will dissolve.
Add tomatoes and stock.
To finish soup, gently simmer until flavors are melded, pumpkin is falling apart, and liquid has reduced slightly, about 20 minutes.
Puree with a hand-held immersion blender. (For an even smoother texture, let soup cool somewhat, and puree in batches in a blender (preferably a high powered Vitamix blender).
Finally, add cream, and then adjust flavor by adding salt and pepper, and if necessary, a few drops of lemon juice.
To serve, ladle 1½ cups of soup into each bowl, and garnish with a dollop of Goat Cheese Crema topped with a spoonful of Green Tomato Pico de Gallo.

Notes

Ingredient Note Other winter squash, such as Red Kuri or Kabocha, or even sweetpotato, can be used here instead of pumpkin. If you do decide to use pumpkin, select a smaller, less fibrous variety, such as sugar pie pumpkin.

Storage Note If you plan to freeze this soup (great to have on hand), don’t add the cream until you defrost and reheat.

Keyword chilies, fall soup, green tomatoes, pumpkin, soups

More LunaCafe Winter Squash, Sweetpotato & Carrot Soups

Cookin’ with Gas (inspiration from around the web)

Butternut Squash Soup with Apple Cider | Bite Sized
Moroccan Butternut Squash Soup | Erin’s Food Files
Creamy Southwestern Pumpkin Soup | My Favorite Flavors
Squash Soup | TasteSpotting
Brazilian Butternut Squash Soup | The MacroChef