perfect [pumpkin] winter soup

i recently found out how super good pumpkin (yes, even canned pumpkin) is for you. (check it out here).  i heard about using pumpkin puree as the base for a soup, so i decided to look some recipes up, but most of them had tons of butter and heavy cream in there.  with my low budget along with trying to eat healthier, i had to use what i could find.
here's what i did....(it was so. gooooooood)

sweet and spicy pumpkin soup (3ish servings)

-one can of pumpkin puree (usually in the baking isle...super inexpensive)
-1-2ish cups of apple juice (what i had in the fridge...but really worked out well...many recipes call for chicken stock)
- 1/2 yellow onion finely chopped (i only had red...but yellow would be better...doesn't really matter)
-2 cloves of garlic finely chopped
-couple scoops of vanilla yogurt (replaces heavy cream)
-little bit of apple cider vinegar (also don't need it, but i love a little acidity in things)
-some white wine (you don't need it...but i love it when i cook)
-splash of skim milk (also not totally necessary)

different spices (whatever you like, really..)
- cayenne pepper
- curry powder
-garlic powder
-turmeric
-chili sauce

i bet an all-spice or more warmy spices like cinnamon, nutmeg etc would be nice, too

this recipe is obviously very flexible.  i used a lot of spices and spicy things to play out the sweetness of the apple juice, along with the vinegar.  the fun in it is trying it as you go and figuring out what to put in it to make it how you like it.  but when you get that perfect onion-y/garlicy/apple sweet/curry spicy taste....bingo!!

i replaced heavy cream with yogurt and high sodium chicken stock with apple juice and spices

first heat a pot coated with olive oil to around medium (or a little higher) and add chopped onions.  "sweat" them down so that they become tender and translucent (salt and pepper always).  at this point, i then added white wine, until the alcohol was cooked out.  i added the garlic and cooked for just a little (garlic is bad burnt, so make sure the heat isn't too high).  

i then added the apple juice until warm, then the puree, then the yogurt (constantly stirring).  now is the fun part: making it savory and spicy.  i added  cayenne, garlic powder, turmeric, curry powder and mustard powder (ooo...you know what? grey poupon would be really good, too....), chili sauce and vinegar.  i kept adding cayenne until it was the perfect heat.  

this soup is especially perfect for those who live in old kirksville houses with thin walls like me.....it'll warm you up for at least...mmm, 4 minutes..