This pumpkin soup is great for any Fall potluck!  The combination of pumpkin and cream cheese give it a rich, creamy texture and the cinnamon, ginger, and brown sugar provide just the right amount of sweetness.  The original inspiration for this soup came from The Joy of Cooking cookbook.  I omitted the ham and added a bar of cream cheese.

Ingredients:

1 T. butter or olive oil

1 cup minced onion

1/2 cup minced celery

3 cups canned pumpkin

3 cups scalded milk

1 bar of cream cheese

2 T. brown sugar

1/2 tsp. ground ginger

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Salt, to taste

Black pepper, to taste

Heat the butter or olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat.  Add the onions and celery and cook until translucent, about 8 minutes.  Stir in the pumpkin, milk, sugar, ginger, cinnamon, salt, and pepper.

Heat through, but do not boil.  Use an immersion blender, or a regular blender, to puree the soup.

You can make this soup the day before your potluck.  Reheat the soup on low and then transfer to a crockpot for potluck time.  You can also serve it with a side of toasted pumpkin seeds or croutons for toppings!