While most people stick to plain old pumpkin desserts, there are lots more options out there. Let us take a look at some of the things you should know about the pumpkin before you get started cooking. You will have a lot more luck!

The first thing to remember is that not every pumpkin will make great soup or pie. The kind of pumpkin you carve at Halloween has been bred to grow big and fast, to stand up to a lot of abuse, and to look pretty on your doorstep. Unfortunately, that means that it is not the best choice for food.

While jack-o-lantern pumpkins are cheap and readily available at supermarkets and roadside stands (especially right after Halloween), they are not always the best pick for eating. They can be fun to feed to local animals and they compost well, but their flesh is not most people's top choice when they want to eat pumpkin.

This does not make this type of pumpkin completely inedible, but you have to know what you are doing if you are determined to use it. Make sure to remove the seeds, and then cook down the pumpkin in the oven or a pot of hot water, until the flesh has softened. Scoop it out of its skin and put the pulp in a food processor to remove any fibrous strands. It will work in pumpkin bread, chili, and other foods that do not need a lot of pumpkin taste.

For foods where you want that pumpkin taste to shine through, like pumpkin pie or an easy pumpkin soup recipe, look for smaller sugar pumpkins. Chock full of potassium, vitamin A and fiber, these pumpkins have a lot more flavor, are much sweeter, and have smoother, more pleasant flesh. They are often used for desserts, but work for any meal where you want the flavor of pumpkin to be a major player.

Use pumpkins in chunks for your pumpkin soup, or cook them in it and puree them with some broth for a silky texture that cannot be beat. There are even a few recipes that call for cooking the soup right in the pumpkin, then stirring the softened flesh off the walls to create your soup. It all depends on what you prefer. Just make sure that you process your pumpkin with care to prevent it from cooking incorrectly and spoiling the recipe.

Pumpkin is a great choice for making soup, and a whole lot more. By paying attention to the type of pumpkin, you have and making sure that you cook it correctly, you will have a much better chance of getting a great fall meal. Try all the great options for making pumpkin soup, and do not forget to buy the right kind of pumpkin.