Recipe: Soup Joumou

Soup Joumou

1 lb. corned beef or beef stew meat water
1 1/2 lbs. pumpkin (peeled & diced)
2 turnips (diced)
1 small onion (finely chopped)
1 sprig parsley
1 sprig thyme
3 garlic cloves (crushed)
1 cup milk
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
1 tbsp. butter
3/4 cup rice, washed (uncooked, not instant) salt
3/4 tsp. pepper
2-4 tsp. butter

In a saucepan, cover beef generously with water and boil over medium low heat, partially covered for 1 hour. Drain and chop beef into bite-sized pieces. In a saucepan, bring 4 cups of water to a boil; add pumpkin, turnips, beef, onions, parsley, thyme, and 2 cloves garlic. Simmer until pumpkin is tender (15 minutes). Discard parsley and thyme. Transfer pumpkin to food processor with 1/4 cup stock and puree. Return to saucepan and heat through. Add milk, nutmeg, butter, and rice; cook until rice is tender (15-20 minutes). Season with salt and pepper, and mix in remaining garlic. Serve hot with a little butter in each bowl.

*Johnna's tip: Thanks to Cuisinivity for this recipe. Cuisinivity, like many of us in the U.S., was deeply impacted by the devastating earthquake that occurred in Haiti just under two weeks ago. Cuisinivity, however, had a more personal connection to Haiti then we (JKGF) did. Cuisinivity posted this recipe (Soup Joumou) which was inspired by the two years they spent in Haiti and often requested this dish for dinner. Soup Joumou is a dish commonly served during the Haitian New Year but Cuisinivity said it was so good, they requested it many times while in Haiti. Get the full story here. Kind of reminds us of a thicker, hardy chicken noodle soup.

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