Dear Sun Spots: I recently had a cup of wonderful Vegan Pumpkin Curry soup at the Bon Bon Cafe in Lewiston. It was delicious, not too spicy. Any chance of getting the recipe? Thanks. – Chris, Monmouth.

Answer: Cafe Bon-Bon head cook and manager Bonnie Loubier is always happy to share her recipes! She found the original recipe years ago from Channel 6, but has made adjustments to make it her own. Cafe Bon-Bon is at 205 Main St., Lewiston, and you can check out other delicious menu items on line at www.cafebon-bon.com. The vegan pumpkin curry soup recipe makes 8 servings.

Ingredients: 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil; 1 large sweet Vidalia onion, chopped; 1 teaspoon minced garlic; 1 tablespoon curry powder; 1 teaspoon thyme leaves; 1 teaspoon oregano; ½ cup soy milk; 1 29-ounce can pumpkin puree, plus another 6 ounces pumpkin puree (total 35 ounces); 4 cups vegan broth; salt and pepper to taste.

Method: On medium heat, cook onion and garlic until clear and translucent in oil. Then combine pumpkin, broth, curry, thyme, oregano in a large stock pot and add the onions. Add salt and pepper to taste and bring to a quick boil. Then let cool. Put in blender to puree onions or use immersion blender to make soup less chunky. Must be cool or you could have a mess on the wall. Put back in pot and add milk and blend.

We also found a recipe for a cold sweet potato soup that you might enjoy this summer. Taken from allrecipes.com, a Web site with thousands of recipes for any level of cooking. It’s the first place Sun Spots searches when we’re in the mood to cook something new. The following recipe makes 8 servings. Ingredients: 6 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped; 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger; 2 cups chicken or vegetable stock; 1 cup water, or as needed; 1 lime, juiced; 2 cups milk or cream, or as needed.

Method: Place potatoes and ginger in large saucepan. Pour in chicken stock and water, and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium low, cover, and simmer until the potatoes have softened, about 30 minutes.

Puree potatoes and lime juice in a food processor, or with a hand blender until smooth. Return soup to saucepan and stir in milk or cream as desired; heat until warmed through. Chill and serve; is also delicious served warm.

Dear Sun Spots: I’m looking for a regulator/valve assembly for a 2 burner propane camping stove. The name brand is Ozark Trail number 842-0100-0. I would appreciate any help. – No Name, No Town.

Answer: Hopefully a reader will have an extra stove that you can use to replace the regulator. This brand is sold exclusively at Wal-Mart and we did not find a stove available for purchase at the store. We read many reviews on www.trailspace.com from people with the same issue. Nobody had any luck finding replacement parts for their stove and some purchased 2 stoves at the same time so they would have extra parts. We were unable to find any contact information; maybe there is a customer service number to call on the box or user’s manual, if you still have those.

Dear Sun Spots: Thank you everyone who responded to my request for Grace Livingston Hill novels. I now have 94 titles out of a possible 117. With all of the sources that I was made aware of, I’m sure the collection will soon be complete. God bless you all! – E. Marden, Strong.

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In addition, you can e-mail your inquiries to sunspots@sunjournal.com.

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