When I was traveling in Peru, I made it a point to go to the largest farmers market in the area, which was located in a small town a couple hours away from my home base in Cuzco. I enlisted a friend I’d met traveling, and we boarded a small bus one Sunday morning and headed out on a mini adventure. I was fascinated by a great many things we saw there, as I was often in my Peruvian travels.

I spent hours eyeing the produce these ladies had brought down from the mountains. It was gorgeous, and while there were a lot of familiar items like red onions, fresh parsley and cilantro, apples, cauliflower and lettuce, they looked just a little different. In addition to some more familiar items, it was cool to see so many varieties of avocados (big small, black, green), tiny limes and apples, pineapples in different shapes and sizes, as well as some local indigenous produce we weren’t familiar with.

One of my favorite things to see at the Pisac market was the huge slices of calabazas they were selling. I’d seen them growing on the side of the trail while I was hiking, and my guide had explained that they were pumpkins. They are, basically, but definitely different from what we midwesterners think of as a pumpkin. First, they are much larger, which is why the ladies in the market were selling by the slice rather than an entire squash. Second, they are shaped a little differently and are often greenish in color. I really wanted to buy a slice, but having no way to really cook it at my B&B, I just snapped some pics and moved on.

When I got back to Chicago, I immediately headed to the Latino grocery store down the street. I was very inspired by Peruvian cuisine and I knew I would find some of the essentials there. I wasn’t looking for the calabazas, per se, but when I saw the huge slices for sale along with a placard explaining the recipe for traditional Central American Calabazas Soup, I knew what I was making for dinner that night.

I went home and got to work. I used the recipe they had posted as a guide, bumping up the heat, and adding corn and beans for more substance. I’ll tell you what, they really have the right idea selling these huge squash by the slice. It was so much easier to clean and cook than when buying an entire pumpkin!

I made the first soup of the season that afternoon and hosted a mini dinner party for a couple friends that evening. The stock pot was empty by the time my friends left.

I suggest trying to find the calabazas at your local Mexican market, but you can certainly use a more traditional pumpkin. If you can’t find the manzano chile, then use about two serranos or habaneros. The manzano is spicy, but it’s much larger in size than most hot peppers. Always de-seed and add your hot pepper earlier in the cooking process to tone down heat.

Calabazas Soup
Yield: About 10 cups soup

¼ cup grapeseed or canola oil
1 sweet yellow onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup small lima beans, rinsed but not cooked
8 cups vegetable stock
2 cups sliced carrots
6 cups water
1 manzano chile pepper, minced seeds included
About 7 cups (or 3 pounds) calabazas pumpkin, chopped
2 teaspoons sea salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
¼ cup fresh parsley
2 cups fresh sweet corn
Juice of 1 lime
¼ cup nutritional yeast (available at a local health food store)
Sliced avocado and green onion for garnish

In a large stock pot, heat the oil. Add the onion and garlic and cook until translucent.
Stir in the vegetable stock and baby lima beans, bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and let simmer about 45 minutes.
Add the carrots and water and let simmer about another 30 minutes.
Stir in the calabazas, chile pepper, sea salt, black pepper, thyme, and bay leaf. Cook on low about 30- 45 minutes until the squash becomes soft and tender.
Add the fresh parsley, sweet corn, fresh lime juice and nutritional yeast. Stir well, turn off heat, and leave covered for about 10 minutes. Let sit uncovered about 15 minutes then serve topped with avocado and green onion.

Kat Barry, a St. Joseph, Michigan native, is owner of Kat’s Hot Cakes vegan catering, and co author of “The New Chicago Diner Cookbook: Meat Free Recipes from America’s Veggie Diner.” She also develops recipes for eHow.com, where you can find over 30 of her vegan instructional cooking videos. She is also a certified yoga instructor. Kat currently resides in Chicago, and in her free time she enjoys practicing yoga, sampling local spirits, listening to live music, and getting outdoors. Follow @katshotcakes on twitter. Kat can be reached via email at: kat@katshotcakes.com.