How to make a spooky (and healthy) spiderweb pumpkin soup

Take this bright orange pumpkin soup from colorful to creepy with the addition of an edible spiderweb and spider.

The soup is quite easy to make with canned or fresh pumpkin puree, and the spiderweb and spider garnishes can be created in under 10 minutes. This is one fast soup! For a hearty meal, I like to serve it with some slices of artisan bread topped with Parmesan and black pepper and then toasted in the oven. This recipe also includes ingredient substitutions to easily make it a vegan, dairy-free soup recipe.

Start by slicing up your olives. Cut an olive in half lengthwise. One half will be the spider’s body, and the other half will make the legs.

Slice the leg section in half, horizontally this time.

Now cut each of those 2 sections in half again.

Once more, cut each of the 4 sections in half. You should now have 8 thin slices. Repeat this with the remaining olives.

Whip up your soup, and heat it until boiling. Ladle it into your bowls, and get ready to draw. If your sour cream is too thick, then you can thin it out with a little bit of milk. If you use coconut milk, make sure to use the full-fat canned variety, and mix it well. Put your sour cream (or coconut milk) into a squeeze bottle, and draw a spiral on the top of each bowl of soup.

Using a toothpick, start from the center of the spiral, and draw several lines to the outer edges. This helps create the spiderweb shape.

You might need to use the sour cream (or coconut milk) to trace over those lines to really make the spiderweb pop.

Place the bodies of your spiders at the center of each spiderweb.

Arrange the legs of the spiders, 4 on each side of the body.

There you have it! Spooky spiderweb soup ready in 20 minutes or less!

Spiderweb pumpkin soup recipe

This soup is easily dairy-free and vegan by substituting with the ingredients in parentheses. If you don’t have a squeeze bottle, then you can use a zip-top plastic bag with the very tip of a corner snipped off instead.

Serves 4

Prep time: 10 minutes | Cook time: 10 minutes | Total time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• 4 large black olives
• 2 tablespoons butter (or coconut oil)
• 1 (29 ounce) can pumpkin puree
• 2 cups chicken stock (or vegetable stock)
• 1 teaspoon ginger powder
• 4 fresh sage leaves, finely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt or kosher salt
• 1/8 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
• 1 tablespoon real maple syrup
• 1/4 cup sour cream (or canned coconut milk)
• 1/2 teaspoon milk (optional)

Instructions:

1. Make your spiders by slicing the olives in half lengthwise.
2. Thinly slice 4 of the olive halves into 8 segments each. Set the olives aside for garnishing.
3. In a large pot over high heat, melt the butter (or coconut oil).
4. Stir in the pumpkin puree, stock, ginger powder, chopped sage, salt, pepper and maple syrup.
5. Heat until boiling, about 8 to 10 minutes.
6. Divide the soup among 4 bowls.
7. Put the sour cream (or coconut milk) into a squeeze bottle. If the sour cream is really thick, then add the milk, and shake well.
8. Use the sour cream (or coconut milk) to draw a spiral on each bowl of soup.
9. Use a toothpick to draw straight lines from the center of each spiral to the outer edges.
10. Draw on top of these lines with the sour cream (or coconut milk).
11. Place an olive half in the center of each web, and arrange 8 olive slivers around each half to make the spiders.

More healthy Halloween recipes

Sweet and savory witch’s brooms
Candy corn fruit skewers
Halloween cheese mummy