Pumpkin or Cushaw Squash Soup

Did you know that there are “Rage Rooms,” where you can pay a small fee, don some safety gear, and smash away at a wide variety of items? There are some days where this seems like perfectly reasonable behavior. Today, I went a different, more productive route, carrying my carving pumpkin outside and laying into it with an enormous cleaver. I kept my eye on the ball… er… pumpkin and WHAM! WHAM! WHAM! I admit it felt great. Afterwords, I had the makings of a soothing lunch.
If you are of the mind that regular Butternut Squash soup runs a bit too sweet, this is a delicious alternative, using large Halloween pumpkins or cushaw squash. My measurements were approximated after the fact.

Hack up your jack-o’-lantern or cushaw (best done outside!)
Pre-roast approx. 4c diced pumpkin (roasting is optional, but will coax out a bit more flavor)
Brown 1 chopped onion (small dice) in the cooking fat of your choice
Add minced garlic and cumin to taste and sauté briefly
Add the diced pumpkin (if not pre-roasted, sauté it a bit now)
Add 4c chicken broth, salt
Simmer until pumpkin is nearly cooked
Add 3 cups black beans (cooked or canned; see below to use raw beans)
Add 2 (or to taste) finely chopped roasted chiles (spicy is nice!)
Simmer to meld flavors, then correct seasoning
Garnish with crumbled cotija, and perhaps whatever herb your refrigerator or kitchen garden yields at the moment
NOTE: If you want to cook raw black beans in the soup, add the pumpkin and chile after they are almost done, and monitor your liquid amount, adding more as needed to end up with the soupiness level you desire.
VARIATION: You could take this in different direction with white beans, parmesan, Calabrian
peppers, thyme/rosemary/sage, and crusty bread

Submitted by Paula Redinger, Tucson CSA