Week of 12/04/2000

Curried Pumpkin Soup
Warming and delicious...

2 Tbls. butter
1 (8 oz.) package sliced fresh mushrooms
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 Tbls. unbleached flour
1 Tbls. curry powder
3 cups chicken broth
2 cups canned pumpkin
1 Tbls. honey
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 1/2 cup heavy cream

Garnishes: sour cream, chopped fresh chives

Melt butter in a large saucepan; add mushrooms and onion and cook until tender, stirring often. Stir in flour and curry powder; gradually add chicken broth and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is thickened.

Stir in pumpkin and next 4 ingredients; reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in heavy cream and cook just until thoroughly heated (do not boil). Adjust seasonings and serve immediately. Yields 6 1/2 cups.

Yams with Spicy Molasses Butter
Your family will love this recipe!

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup clover honey plus 2 Tbls. molasses
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
Large pinch of cayenne pepper
8 (10 to 11 oz.) yams


Beat butter, honey, molasses, cinnamon, cloves and cayenne in medium bowl to blend; season with salt. (May be prepared 5 days ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Bring mixture to room temperature before using.)

Preheat oven to 350û F. Rinse potatoes; pat dry. Pierce each several times with fork; place on baking sheet. Bake potatoes until tender, about 1 hour.

Cut top of each potato lengthwise; press in ends to open top. Spoon some butter mixture into opening of each potato and serve.

Brandied Pumpkin Ice-Cream Pie with Malted Pecans
Easy, low-fat and very tasty!

Crust:
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
3 Tbls. sugar
2 Tbls. butter, melted
2 tsp. water
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Cooking spray

Pie:
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground allspice
1/4 tsp. fresh ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp. ground ginger
2 Tbls. brandy (optional)
4 cups vanilla low-fat ice cream, softened
3 Tbls. chopped pecans, toasted
2 Tbls. malted milk powder

Preheat oven to 350û F. Crust: Combine first 5 ingredients in a bowl; toss with fork until moist. Press into bottom and up sides of a 9-inch pie plate coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350û for 10 minutes; cool on a wire rack.

Pie: Combine pumpkin and next 5 ingredients (pumpkin through ginger) in a bowl. Stir in brandy, if desired. Fold in ice cream to create a marbled effect. Spoon pumpkin mixture into prepared crust. Cover with heavy duty foil, seal and freeze.

To serve, let pie stand 20 minutes in refrigerator to soften. Place pecans and malted milk in a food processor, and process until pecans are ground. Sprinkle pecan mixture around edge of pie. Serves 8.