This being Halloween there is plenty of pumpkin available. European executive chef called Santo Zoppis who used to come down to Pattaya at the weekends, assured me that this really is one of those secret recipe’s handed down through the generations, given to Santo by his mother, Giuseppina.
Santo puts aside 10 minutes for preparation and 25 minutes for cooking, so it is a quick and easy soup. Santo (or his mother) may kill me for this, but although the recipe calls for fresh thyme, dried thyme could be used if the fresh product is unavailable.
Cooking Method
Peel the pumpkin, remove the seeds and cut into small pieces. Peel the onion and cut into slices.
Heat the butter in a soup pot, add the onion and pumpkin, and cook over a low heat for 3 minutes. Add the milk, rice and fresh thyme; simmer gently until the pumpkin is cooked (about 20 minutes). Season with salt and pepper.
Now place the entire mixture into a blender and blend until smooth. Reheat the soup and serve immediately.
| Ingredients | Serves 6 |
| Cleaned pumpkin | 500 gm |
| Milk | 1.2 liters |
| Onion | 80 gm |
| Butter | 30 gm |
| Rice | 50 gm |
| Fresh thyme | 1 pinch |
| Salt and pepper to taste | |
