Sweet and Spicy Pumpkin Soup

Hey there! Have you missed me? Have you even noticed I've been gone? I have two and a half weeks left until my oral exam, and am in full freak-out mode. It's not a pretty sight. I don't think you need the details.

So if you think you haven't heard from me lately, you might be hearing from me even less from now until December 10th. But, you know, there are always the archives. Oh, and I have this super easy Pumpkin Soup to help tide you over. Want some?

Sweet and Spicy Pumpkin Soup

From The Vegan Table

3 tablespoons water, or more as needed

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/8 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper

2 cups vegetable stock

1, 15 oz. can pumpkin purée

2 tablespoons real maple syrup

Juice of 1/2 lemon

2 cups milk (non-dairy if you want to keep it Vegan)

Salt, to taste

Parsley, for garnish if you want

Preheat the water in a soup pot and add the onion and garlic. Cook over medium for about 5 minutes, until the onion is soft. Add more water if the pot gets dry.

Add the turmeric, ginger, cumin, cinnamon, cardamom, and cayenne. Stir to coat the onions and garlic, then add the stock, the pumpkin, the maple syrup and the lemon juice. Simmer on low heat for 15 minutes.

Stir in the milk, remove from the heat and purée according to your preferred method (mine is with an immersion blender, but you can also purée with a normal blender in batches). Return the soup to the heat, and heat over medium until hot, but don't boil (milk doesn't like boiling). You only need about 5 minutes. Taste, add salt, garnish with parsley and serve.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Oh little blog, how I've been neglecting you. My dog can relate. So can all of my friends, my family, my plants if I had any. Good thing I don't own fish. My books, on the other hand, not very ignored. Stupid books. But there's just a little over one month left to go, which is both too much and too little, until my Oral Exams (seems like that should be capitalized). And then I'll really be back, and probably with a vengeance since I've had it to here with frozen dinners and cereal. In fact, I've had it past here.

So tonight, I'd like to imagine I'm back in the forth grade again. Incredibly awkward, not very good at making friends, too shy, too quiet. Those cute fourth grade boys never talk to me. Except one time, which I remember distinctly, when the second coolest boy in school told me he loved my mother's oatmeal cookies. Oh heck yea.

My mom recently made a batch and sent them to me, along with the recipe to share with all of you. So if you have your eye on the second coolest boy, these will do the trick. Promise.

Too Cool for School Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup butter

2 cups sugar

2 large eggs

1 tablespoon molasses

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 cups flour

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups quick cooking oats

2/3 cup raisins (don't be that person who skips the raisons)

1 cup chopped nuts (walnuts, pecans, you know what to do)

1/2 cups chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 F and set out an ungreased cookie sheet

Cream together the butter and sugar by beating until pale and fluffy with an electric beater.

Add the eggs, the molasses and the vanilla to the butter and stir in.

In a separate bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda and salt, and gradually add this mixture to the butter mixture.

Stir in the oats, raisins, nuts and chocolate and drop by teaspoonful onto the cookie sheet. These guys like to spread, so leave plenty of room.

Bake for 10-12 minutes until lightly browned and delicious.