Babe are you ok you've barely touched your pumpkin spice latte soup

Disclaimer: no syrup or coffee were harmed in this experiment

Let me kick this off by admitting that I’ve never actually tried a Pumpkin Spice Latte (if you ask me, pumpkin pie spice doesn’t belong anywhere but in pumpkin pie). HOWEVER, with Thanksgiving around the corner, what better time to pay homage to one of Starbucks’ most controversial sugar-laden and seasonal drinks in the form of soup?

Two attempts at latte art

Below you’ll find a recipe for the Pumpkin Spice Latte soup, as well as a pumpkin spiced bone broth (if you’re a DIY bone broth person, if not feel free to use regular storebought broth or stock cubes).

Sidenotes

• Before you call the police on the broth front, know that there’s a fair amount of ingredient overlap with my broth recipe below and pho broth (cinnamon, cloves, ginger) so don’t knock it til ya try it! Regarding frothed (oat) milk in soup, I’ve decided that since it’s socially acceptable to add copious amounts of cream to soups, this topping isn’t entirely illegal. 

• For the carcasses, ask a butcher who you trust for leftover carcasses (I won’t reveal mine because 3 friends and I are in a battle for chicken carcasses in our neighbourhood every week). 

• These days, I almost exclusively use my favourite squash - it’s called Delica or Kabocha squash and it looks like this👇. I get it at Natoora and although the price tag hurts every time I would 10/10 recommend it!!!! 

PSL Soup

Ingredients (serves 4-6 depending on the size of your squash)

• 1-2 tablespoons olive oil 

• 4 small or 2 large shallots (peeled & sliced)

• 4 garlic cloves (peeled & sliced)

• 1 delica squash (de-seeded and carefully chopped into crescents, skin peeled off, cut into cubes)

• 1+ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (a mix of ground cinnamon, ginger, cloves, 5 spice) 

• Ca. 1 litre pumpkin spice bone broth (or just regular broth/stock)

• Sage leaves

• Chilli flakes

• Optional: foamed oat milk (sugar-free)

Instructions

1. Heat the olive oil in a medium pot, then add in the shallots and sauté until softened on a low flame (should take around 5 minutes)

2. Add in the garlic and sauté for 5 further minutes

3. Add in squash pieces, cover, and cook for about 10 minutes, then sprinkle in the pumpkin pie spice, cover with the broth and simmer for 20ish minutes (until everything is softened)

4. Heat up a bit of oil in a small pan and fry the sage leaves until crispy. 

5. Foam your milk (add a dash of pumpkin pie spice if you’re feeling adventurous)

6. Blend the soup and serve across 4-6 bowls, top with a bit of frothed oat milk, crispy sage, and chilli

Pumpkin Spiced Broth

Ingredients (makes around 4 litres) 

• A large pot and lots of patience

• 4 chicken carcasses 

• A splash of neutral cooking oil

• 1 or 2 onions or shallots, quartered but not peeled 

• 1 bulb of garlic, cut in half

• 1 knob of ginger, halved

• 2 tablespoons of cloves

• 4 cinnamon sticks

• 2+ tablespoons of salt (I am a salt addict and use probably 4)

• A splash of apple cider vinegar

1. BLANCH THE BONES: place the bones in a large pot, cover with cold water, bring to a boil, and simmer aggressively for 20 minutes. Then drain and rinse (this gets rid of the impurities)

2. ROAST THE BONES: preheat your oven to 200ish (celsius) and roast until basically caramelised, about 45min. 

3. SEAR THE AROMATICS (I’ve only recently started doing this and it adds so much depth to broth). First, clean the pot, then heat up a splash of neutral oil. Add in the onions/shallots, garlic, and ginger, and sear until some parts are blackened. Then, add in the cloves and cinnamon sticks and turn off the flame until the carcasses are ready.

4. BROTH TIME! Add the carcasses back to the large pot (deglaze the roasting pan + add those bits too) and then fill up with fresh water and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the temperature down to a simmer, and add in the salt and apple cider vinegar. Every now and then, use a slotted spoon to remove any scum that might rise on the surface. Simmer until it reduces by about half (this can take around 6 hours) then strain, let cool down, and refrigerate for 3-5 days in a sealed container (or freeze for up to 3 months). 

What the broth lacks in looks it makes up for in flavour

AN ANNOUNCEMENT

… and FINALLY a very exciting announcement! Next week I’ll be dropping a 2023 SOUP CALENDAR (in collaboration with the brilliant, talented, amazing, souperstar Giada of OSMO) to brighten up your walls through all of 2023!!! Each month features a seasonally relevant soup + recipe. It will be available to purchase via my shiny new website (stay tuned, it isn’t live yet) and will ship to Europe and the UK. If you’re located somewhere else in the world and want one please email sssssoupsssss@gmail.com and we can figure something out ❤️‍🔥

Blurred to keep the mystery alive 🕵️‍♀️

As always… thoughts, comments, concerns… hit me up!

xoxo