First Place Winner - Savory Category:

Spiced Pumpkin-Coconut Soup with Cocoa-Wattleseed Crème, Crispy Bacon and Fresh Pomegranate

Creator: Erin Evenson, NY
Servings: 4
Adventure Ingredients: Coriander, Black or pink peppercorns, Chili pepper (whole dried), Coconut milk, Wattleseed, Palm sugar

INGREDIENTS

• 1/2 pound bacon, diced
• 1 large yellow onion, peeled and chopped
• 1 large carrot, peeled, trimmed and chopped
• 1 stalk celery with greens, chopped
• Kosher salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and pressed
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 heaping tablespoon palm sugar
• 3 dried chipotle chilies, stemmed, seeded and reconstituted in boiling water for 15 minutes
• 1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree
• 5 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 2 tablespoons SCHARFFEN BERGER Natural Cocoa Powder
• 1 teaspoon ground wattleseed
• 2 tablespoons fresh pomegranate seeds
• 1 oz. SCHARFFEN BERGER 82% cacao extra dark chocolate, grated

PREPARATION

In a large stockpot over medium heat, cook the bacon until the fat has rendered and the bacon is crisp. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to paper towels to drain and leave the rendered bacon fat in the stockpot.

Add the chopped yellow onion, carrot, celery with greens and a pinch each of kosher salt and freshly-ground black pepper to the bacon fat and cook until the vegetables have softened, about 5 to 6 minutes. Add the garlic, ground ginger, ground coriander, ground cumin, ground cinnamon, palm sugar and chipotle chilies to the vegetable mixture and sauté for another 3 minutes.

Add the pumpkin puree, vegetable broth and coconut milk, stir, and reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 30 minutes.

While the soup is simmering, in a small mixing bowl, combine the Greek yogurt, sour cream, SCHARFFEN BERGER Natural Cocoa Powder and ground wattleseed until well-combined. Cover the bowl and refrigerate to let the flavors blend until ready to serve.

To serve, spoon desired amount of soup into bowls, top with a dollop of cocoa-wattleseed crème and a sprinkling of bacon pieces.