We don’t always end a holiday meal with pumpkin pie-sometimes we begin the feast with this spicy soup with its Caribbean island flavor. If you don’t want to use pumpkin, any winter squash, such as butternut, acorn or Hubbard, will do. This is an easy recipe to prepare, but if you want an even quicker version, used canned pumpkin puree or a 12-ounce package or frozen cooked winter squash as a base. This recipe is from Dave’s and my book, The Spicy Food Lover’s Bible.
This recipe makes enough stuffing for a small turkey. Or a Guinea hen. Or a large capon. Or two small chickens. Or about 15 or more game hens.
These beans go well with simple meats, such as turkey, or with cheese dishes. They add color and just a mild heat to any meal. For a different taste, I’ve also used this recipe substituting zucchini squash for the beans and serrano chiles for more heat.
I don’t always serve pumpkin pie for desert at Thanksgiving. Sometimes I make a pumpkin cheese cake, muffins, or this spicy soup with an island taste. If you don’t want to use pumpkin, any winter squash will do. Use butternut, acorn, or Hubbard, or for preparation ease, use canned pumpkin puree.
This dish is traditionally served during the Christmas season in New Mexico, when a pot simmering at the back of the stove provides a welcoming fare for holiday well-wishers. I can’t remember any holiday party or dinner that I’ve attended that this stew hasn’t been served. At my house this is a staple on Christmas Eve. I always have a pot ready to warm my husband and I up after strolling Old Town and enjoying the luminarias. Similar to, yet different from the “pozole” served in Mexico, this popular dish is served as a soup, a main course, or a vegetable side dish. Posole, the processed corn, is the main ingredient of this dish of the same name. If posole corn is not available, you may substitute hominy–the taste won’t be the same, but it will still be good.
