Creamy Pumpkin Bisque 

Serves about eight 8 ounce bowls:

½ Cup onion, sliced thin
¼ Cup carrot, peeled and sliced thin
¼ Cup celery, sliced thin
¼ Cup parsnip, peeled and sliced thin
1 Tbs fresh thyme leaves, (dried will work as well)
½ Stick butter (2 ounces)
½ cup flour
½ Cup Bourbon
2 Qt vegetable stock, or water
1 can pumpkin puree (16 ounces)
¾ Cup crème fraiche, (heavy cream will also work)
1 ½ tsp Chinese five spice
½ tsp white pepper
2 Tbs salt
½ c pumpkinseeds, toasted
1/3 c Pumpkinseed oil, (Extra virgin olive oil will do if not available.)

To Make the Bisque:

Heat a 4-5 quart sauce pot and melt the butter.  Add the onion, carrot, celery, parsnip
and thyme, sweat until tender.  Stir in the flour and cook for 8-10 minutes over
medium heat stirring occasionally.

Remove the pan from the heat and deglaze with bourbon.  Return to the heat, add
vegetable stock and stir with a whisk until flour is dissolved. Bring to a boil, reduce
heat to a simmer. Simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Remove from the heat; add pumpkin puree, Chinese five spice powder, salt, and pepper.
With a hand blender puree the mixture until completely smooth. If you do not have a hand
blender a regular standing blender will do. Just blend a little pumpkin puree with the soup
base in batches.

Once the soup is pureed you may strain through a fine strainer pushing it through wit a
ladle, though this is not completely necessary but strongly recommended.

Finally, stir in the crème fraiche with a whisk and adjust the seasoning as needed.

Pour soup into bowls and sprinkle into each bowl 1 Tbs of pumpkinseeds and drizzle
in 2 tsp of pumpkinseed or extra virgin olive oil.

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