Chicken and Pumpkin Soup

Every Saturday is soup day in Jamaica. We eat kidney beans, pumpkins, broth like, or seafood based soups. I love them all, but my preference is pumpkin and yes, seafood based soups. Today, I am going to share a pumpkin and chicken soup recipe. I hope you'll enjoy it!

Ingredients

2 Chicken Breasts

2 Chicken Legs or Thighs

My mom would frown upon this, but, a can of pumpkin (we usually peel and cook the pumpkin ourselves)

4 Stalks of Scallion

2 Sprigs of Thyme

2 Gloves of Garlic

1lb Yam (not sweet potato, look for the caribbean coco)

1 Cup of Flour

2 Potatoes

2 Large Carrots

1/2 Onion

Grace Chicken Noodle Soup Base, or two chicken bouillion  

1 Whole Scotch Bonnet or Haberno Pepper

Salt

Method

Bring 1/2 gallon of water to boil. Chop chicken legs or thighs add to pot, along with garlic, onion and chopped potatoes and carrots. Cook for approximately 30 minutes. In the meantime, knead flour with a pinch of salt and let sit. Cut chicken breasts and  yam into small cubes and set aside.

Add the can of pumpkin and allow to boil. Once boiled, add chicken and yam to the pot. This may get tricky now, pull small pieces of the flour and rub between your palms to make little dumplings. Add them to the pot and cover and cook for another 30 minutes. 

Your kitchen should start smelling like a Jamaican kitchen on a Saturday afternoon :). Time to flavor your pot. Add the scallion, thyme, pepper (do not cut), and soup base or bouillion. Taste and add salt if needed. Stir and cook for another 10 minutes to allow the flavors to meet each other. Remove thyme and scallion and serve hot.

You can cut a corn cobb into 3 or 4 pieces and add to the soup with the dumplings, for a richer soup. I didn't have any on hand, but the show must go on.....

BNW~

Fun Beverages With a Caribbean Flare

These are some of my favorite punches and juices. I will continue to add recipes on this thread, so check back often.  To get started, hail to the black gold and green...RUM punch, a Jamaican favorite.




Jamaican Rum Punch

500ml (3/4 Bottle) Jamaican White Rum
750 ml  Pineapple Juice
750 ml  Fruit Punch
3 Tsp of Angostura Bitters
1/4 Cup Lime Juice

Method:
Pour contents in a large jug, stir and refrigerate.Serve chill






(Irish) Potato Punch

1lb Potato
2 Cups of Milk
1/2 Cup Condensed Milk
Sugar 
Vanilla
Nutmeg
1 Tbsp of Rum

Method:
Boil potatoes until they are tender. Drain half of the water and empty contents in a blender, add milk and puree until potato has dissolved. Sweeten and flavor with condensed milk, sugar to taste, rum, vanilla and nutmeg. Chill and serve.






Jamaican Style Carrot Juice

1lb Carrot
2 Cup of Milk
1/2 Cup of Condensed Milk
Sugar
Vanilla
Nutmeg

Method:
Boil carrots until tender. Let cool (do not drain). Transfer to your blender, add milk and blend until carrots have completely dissolved. Sweeten with condense milk, sugar to taste, vanilla and nutmeg. This is a preferred drink to accompany your Sunday dinner.

This recipe was one of my favorites with Sunday dinners. Some of my friends, not so much, they prefer to get the nutrients instead of having them destroyed in the boiling of the carrots. This taste better to me, so I am sacrificing the nutrients here and I will seek them from the solid portion of my meal. If you want to get the full nutrients however, see the recipe below.




Carrot and Beet Root Juice

1lb Carrot
2 Beets
3 Cups of Water
1 Tin of Condensed Milk
2 Tsp Vanilla
1Tsp Nutmeg (optional)
1 Tsp Almond Flavor

Method:
Wash and cut carrots and beets into small cubes. Add to blender with water and puree until the vegetables have completely shredded. Strain into a jug and sweeten with condensed milk, vanilla, nutmeg and almond flavor. Refrigerate and enjoy with a yummy dish.




Papaya, Mango and Orange Punch

1 Lg Ripe Papaya
1 Lg Ripe Mango
2 Cups of Orange Juice
2 Cups of Water
Juice of 1 Lime
Sugar to taste


Method:
Gotta have my mango. Dice mango, and papaya and add to blender with orange juice, lime juice and water and blend until the fruits have completed dissolved. Pour contents into a jug and sweeten to taste. Refrigerate and serve chilled. Yum :)



Pineapple Ginger Zinger

2 Cups of Fresh Pineapple chunks
3 Cups of Water
1/3 Cup of Fresh Ginger Sliced
1 Lime or Lemon Juice
Sugar
Sprite or Ginger Ale ( optional)

Method
Blend pineapple water and ginger until the chunks have Liquified. Pour through a strainer into a large jug, add lime/lemon juice and sweeten to taste. Top off with some soda for a nice little fizz (optional). Refrigerate and enjoy chilled.





Pumpkin Punch

My mom used to make this at least once a month. It is so rich and creamy and easy to make.Since the country is in a pumpkin frenzy, I think it is a good time to share this one.

1 Small Pumpkin (scale if you wish to make a bigger batch)
4 Cups Almond Milk ( sweetened vanilla)
Sweetened  Condensed Milk
1/2 Bottle Guinness or Any Dark Full Bodied Stout
Grated Nutmeg
Vanilla
Salt
Water

Method:

Boil Pumpkin in salt and water. When tender, remove from heat and let cool. Blend with water, almond milk and Guinness. Sweeten to taste with condensed milk and flavor with nutmeg and vanilla.