post- thanksgiving

roasted butternut squash soup

In celebration of my first Thanksgiving as an “official” vegetarian (I don’t really know what that means) and to satisfy my mom’s desire to have a classy soup course with dinner this year, I decided to cook me up some butternut squash soup.  I was a little intimidated at first, not only had I never cooked with, or even tasted a butternut squash before, but Thanksgiving is quite the time to debut a new experiment. Pressures on!

Making the roasted butternut squash

2 medium butternut squashes (yes squashes is a word) peeled, seeded, and chopped. Coat lightly will olive oil, season with salt and pepper

2 cloves of garlic 

Bake @ 425 F for 30 minutes or they soften and caramelize (the garlic will be done earlier)

*** highly suggest throwing the squash seeds on the baking sheet, I flavored them with salt and red pepper and let them get brown and crispy, they were so good I was tempted to grab the rest out of the seeds out of the garbage... but I didn't I promise.

Squashy Soup

Coat bottom of pot with a few tbs of olive oil  

Chop & add 1 large white onion and 1 stalk of celery

Season w/ 2 cloves of roasted garlic (finely chopped), 1 sage leaf (also finely chopped), salt & pepper, red pepper

Deglaze the pot with a splash of apple cider vinegar and a splash of white wine

Add a large carton of veggie stock, 1 tbs maple syrup squash, and your roasted squash. Let simmer & mingle for a few minutes. 

texture

Creamy or chunky? Up to you! Use whatever fancy kitchen gadgets you might have to work the soup to your desired texture. Even if you just have the basics, like me you still have options... I decided to transfer half of the squash (use slotted spoon) to puree in the blender, and mashed the rest of the squash in the pot with a potato masher. Result? smooth and thick, not completely liquified perfection. 

Let simmer for another 10-15 minutes with a thyme sprig and sage leaf, remove them and serve with a scoop of sour cream! 

If you are feeling adventurous, there are a few ways to give standard butternut soup a kick! Try adding potato and heavy cream for a hearty creamy soup, or a chopped apple and apple cider for something on the sweeter side... mashed white beans to get in some protein... the options are endless!!

 

Although I have concluded that butternut squash soup is not my favorite, this eazy recipe makes an elegant soup with complex flavors, how sneaKY!