First off - HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!! What is/was your costume this year? Trying to be creative without spending a ton of money, I went with an iconic figure and it turned out pretty well - I only spent $2 for the red & white polka dot fabric and $3 for the red socks - I already owned everything else I wore! I got a lot of compliments on how it came together, so that was pretty awesome...here's a little photo of the finished product:
 |
| Rosie the Riveter |
NOW...onto the food...
Have you ever cooked anything involving butternut squash? Until the other night I had not, and let me tell you it can be quite the process depending on the complexity of the meal you are preparing. Yes, I have heard that pre-cut, frozen butternut squash exists (although I have yet to see it...quite possibly because I wasn't looking for it) but where is the fun in that?! If you're like me, you find a great sense of peace, comfort & happiness in the many detailed steps of preparing a meal from scratch. There's just something about obtaining fresh produce (bonus if it was locally grown), washing it, peeling it, cutting into it & discovering what's inside - not just the seeds...the color, smell, taste...completely amazing components of nature if you really think about it.
Since I had never made butternut squash soup before, I did my usual recipe research to understand the basics of creating the soup, then I applied my own taste buds & decided what direction to take it in. My recipe is a bit of a twist on the average butternut squash soup, but it turned out pretty delicious for my first go. Roasting the squash, sweet potato & carrots together before combining them with the stock & the other ingredients really does help bring out the flavors. I also used a bit of grated ginger, which I am not a huge fan of on its own, but I thought it would be a nice compliment to the apple, cinnamon & nutmeg. It was also my first time buying ginger from the store & using it in a recipe - I am all about firsts when it comes to cooking right now. There is no better way to improve & fine-tune your cooking skills than trying new recipes with new ingredients - it is so worth it in the end, even if the first batch of whatever you make isn't perfect - you're learning - and that is a beautiful thing.
I began my first ever adventure in butternut squash soup by pouring myself a glass of red wine & turning on some Ray LaMontagne - if you don't know who Ray is please do yourself a favor and look him up. His music will do nothing but relax & inspire you as you cook to your heart's content. If you'd like a suggestion of where to start, here is a live recording of one of my favorite songs by him titled "Empty" - each & every word of this song is so hauntingly beautiful I get chills every time I hear it, and it never ever gets old.
Check out photos & the recipe for the soup below - Enjoy!
 |
| Fresh local produce | Spaghetti squash & onion will be used at a later time | Stay tuned |
 |
| Butternut squash, halved |
 |
| Scrape out seeds/gunk |
 |
| Cut up squash |
 |
| Peel & chop sweet potato |
 |
| Peel & chop carrot |
 |
| Drizzle with olive oil, salt & pepper | Roast on cookie sheet | Photo is post-roast |
 |
| Peel ginger & grate | Peel shallot & dice | Mince garlic |
 |
| Peel & chop apple |
 |
| Add to stock pot for sauté |
 |
| Simmer baby, simmer |
 |
| Add roasted veggies |
 |
| Use blender to puree in small batches |
 |
| Looking like baby food but oh so good |
 |
| Final product | Fall treat |
Roasted Butternut Squash, Sweet Potato & Carrot Soup with Apples
Ingredients:
- 1 small-medium butternut squash, peeled & cut up into 2 inch cubes
- 1 medium sweet potato, peeled & cut up into cubes
- 1 medium-large carrot, peeled & sliced
- 1 shallot, diced (could also use onion - I'd recommend yellow)
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 apple, diced (I used Granny Smith)
- about 1 inch fresh ginger, grated (not necessary for recipe but a nice touch)
- about 4 tblsp oil (olive or canola is good, could also use plain vegetable)
- 2.5 cups low-sodium vegetable stock (add up an extra cup or so if wanting a thinner consistency for the soup. Chicken stock would also work; low-sodium is a healthier choice)
- 2 cups water (plus more for puree process)
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- salt to taste
- pepper to taste
Directions:
You will need to preheat your oven to 400°F to roast the vegetables, but I suggest waiting until after you peel & chop the butternut squash and sweet potato, as those can be time consuming and ovens don't take too long to preheat, so it's best to save gas/energy. I will remind you below when to do so!
Rinse squash, sweet potato & carrot and pat dry. Slice the butternut squash in half. Scoop out seeds/strings and discard. NOTE: I had never cut up a butternut squash before, so I began by cutting about 2 inch slices, then I cut off the outer skin from each slice, then I chopped each into about 2 inch cubes. The squash can be hard to peel with a peeler (and mine was) so I found this method to work just fine.
Peel sweet potato and cut into cubes (about 1.5 inch cubes). Preheat Oven to 400°F. Peel carrot and slice into pieces. Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray. Add vegetables to cookies sheet in as much of a single layer as possible. Drizzle vegetables with about 2 tblsp oil, then season lightly with salt & pepper. Throw into oven and set timer for 12 mins. Once timer goes off, remove vegetables & stir gently, then put back into oven for another 12 mins.
While veggies are roasting, dice the shallot, mince the garlic and grate the ginger. Peel and dice the apple. In a large pot or a stock pot, add 2 tblsp oil. Add shallot & garlic and sauté over medium heat for 2 minutes. Add apple and ginger and cook for one more minute. Add vegetable broth & 2 cups of water and bring to a boil. Add cinnamon and nutmeg. Boil for 5 minutes, stirring often - then add roasted vegetables to pot. Simmer over medium heat for about 10 minutes, then remove from heat.
Soup will be hot so be very careful when pureeing. Transfer about 2 cups of soup at a time into blender; add 1/2 cup of water to blender for each 2 cups soup and puree. Transfer to a container for serving or tupperware for storage. Soup can be frozen for several weeks.
*Serving suggestion* - Serve warm, but also tastes good cold. The soup is thick, so serving with some toasted bread on the side for dipping is a nice touch. Also, a dollop of sour cream or Greek yogurt when serving will add a nice contrast to the soup, as well. Hope you enjoy!
No comments:
Post a Comment