Yesterday was National Peanut Butter Day and the first thing that popped into my head when I saw that was pumpkin peanut butter soup. I have no idea why other than I had a pumpkin on the counter from my mom’s garden that needed to be used before it went bad. Turns out I was too late and one side of the pumpkin was mushy but I had some cubed pumpkin in the freezer. I seasoned the soup with a variety of spices and while it could have used some heat from cayenne or chili oil, the ginger and clove brought a nice spice to it. It reminds me of Thai peanut sauce, which is my favorite use of peanut butter. I served it with steamed broccoli and it would be good with rice as well.

4 cups pumpkin, cubed
4 cups vegetable stock
1 cup unsweetened peanut butter, creamy
1 medium onion, diced
2 tsp olive oil
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
1/2 tsp fennel, ground
1/2 tsp sweet paprika
1/2 tsp white pepper
1/4 tsp cloves, ground

In a medium sauce pot, sauté onions and olive oil until onions are translucent. Add cubed pumpkin, vegetable stock, salt, ginger, fennel, paprika, cloves and white pepper. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Simmer until pumpkin is cooked through. Add peanut butter and purée in blender or food processor until smooth (an immersion blender would work well). Return to sauce pot and simmer on low for another ten minutes. Serve with steamed vegetables, rice, chopped peanuts, lime wedges, green onions, and a drizzle of chili oil if desired.