Cream Of Caribbean Pumpkin Soup With Cacao Nibs Crema De Calabaza Y Cacao Recipes

GOLDEN SQUASH BLOSSOM CREMA: CREMA DE FLORES DE CALABAZA

Steps:

• The broth: In a 4-quart soup pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until lightly brown, about 5 minutes. Scoop out half of the onion and set aside. Add the broth and potato, partially cover, and simmer over medium-low heat for 20 minutes.
• The blossoms: While the broth is simmering, clean the squash blossoms: break off the stems, then the little green sepals that come out from the base of the blossoms (they originally covered the buds). Use your fingers to break loose the long pistils in the center of each flower and discard. With a very sharp knife, cut the blossoms cross-wise into 1/4-inch strips, including the bulbous base.
• Add half the blossoms to the broth and simmer 3 minutes. In a food processor or in batches in a loosely covered blender (or using an immersion blender), puree the mixture; return to the pot.
• The chiles: Roast the chiles directly over the gas flame, on a medium-hot gas grill, or 4 inches below a very hot broiler. Turn occasionally, until blistered and blackened on all sides, 5 to 6 minutes for the flame or grill, about 10 minutes for the broiler. Cover with a kitchen towel and let stand about 5 minutes. Peel off the charred skin, cut out the seed pod, then quickly rinse to remove straggling bits of skin and seeds. Cut into 1/4-inch dice.
• Finishing the soup: Add the chiles to the soup along with the milk and reserved onion; bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Add the zucchini and corn, simmer a couple of minutes, then add the remaining squash blossoms. Simmer a couple of minutes longer (the strips of blossom will soften into deep-golden "streamers"), remove from the heat, stir in the cream, taste, and season with salt. Serve in warm bowls garnished with the chopped epazote or parsley.

FLAN DE CALABAZA (PUMPKIN)

Steps:

• Scoop out the filling of the pie slices and put them in a mixing bowl. Add in the milk and mix well. There's empty crust leftover, which you can discard or just pop in your mouth.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, and boil some water. Spray 2 ramekins with cooking spray to prevent sticking. This preparation needs to happen first, because the next part is a little time sensitive.
• Put the sugar in a saucepan over medium heat. This will begin the caramelization process as it melts down to syrupy consistency-about 10 minutes. Stir it frequently until it becomes brownish in color, and then immediately pour a layer of it in each ramekin before it starts solidifying as it cools. Then top each ramekin with the pumpkin mixture. Place the ramekins on a rimmed baking sheet, and then pour about a 1/2-inch layer of boiling water into the sheet to ensure even baking. Bake for 20 minutes.
• After baking, let the ramekins cool, and then refrigerate them for a couple of hours until they're cold. Place a plate over each ramekin and then flip the two upside down so you can slowly lift the ramekin to reveal the flan inside. Garnish it with fresh mint if you have it and want it to look extra fancy.