Chinese five-spice powder is a blend of the 5 most commonly used spices in Chinese cooking: star anise, cloves, cinnamon, fennel and black pepper. The blend is now currently available in many supermarkets, and adds a new dimension of flavor to this autumnal soup.
Spiced Maple Pumpkin Soup with Sauteed Cremini Mushrooms
Servings
6 Servings
Ingredients
- 2 15-ounce cans pure pumpkin
- 4 cups water
- 1 cup vanilla soymilk
- 1 garlic clove crushed
- ¼ cup pure maple syrup
- 4 tablespoons light olive oil divided
- 2½ teaspoons Chinese five-spice powder
- 1½ pounds cremini mushrooms thinly sliced
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 2-3 pita breads cut into strips
- vegetable cooking spray
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Simmer: Bring first 4 ingredients to a simmer in a large saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring often. Whisk in syrup, 2 tablespoons butter and five-spice powder. Continue to simmer for 10 minutes, whisking often. While soup simmers, prepare the mushrooms.
- Sauté: Melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter in heavy medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and sauté until tender, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and season soup with salt and pepper. Divide among 6 bowls. Top soup with sautéed mushrooms and Pita Chips.
- Pita Chips
- Preheat oven to 400°. Prepare a baking sheet lined with foil. Arrange pita strips in a single layer on the baking sheet. Spray with cooking spray. Dust with cayenne pepper and cinnamon. Bake for 2-3 minutes, or until golden.
Chinese Five Spice powder is a combination of five spices: cinnamon, star anise, fennel, cloves and black pepper. If you cannot find it you simply substitute with cinnamon and a touch of black pepper
what is in “Chinese five spice”? is there an alternative?