Thursday, November 4, 2010

squish squash... it’s fall

Fall has not officially arrived until I’ve made at least one pumpkin pie and a pot of squash soup. In years past, both of these items are made for our annual Halloween party. But, since we spent Halloween evening at some friends’ house this year, neither of these things have graced our table.

Today, because it’s a warm and sunny fall day, and the leaves are a million shades of beautiful golden colors, and fall is halfway over, I’m making squash soup.

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DELICATA SQUASH SOUP

PRINTABLE RECIPE

Ingredients:

2-3 pounds of Delicata squash (or your favorite squash) I like the sweet flavor Delicata brings to the mix
2 medium sized sweet onions
2 large carrots
1 celery
2 apples, peeled and cored
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper
2-3 cups chicken stock
1/2 teaspoon good curry powder
1/2 - 1 cup half and half (or cream if you want it a bit richer)

Instructions:

Peel, gut and dice the squash into 1-inch pieces. Peel the onions and cut into 1-inch chunks. Peel two carrots and cut them into small pieces. Do the same with the apples, and cut the celery into small pieces too.

Throw all the fruits and vegetables into a baking dish, drizzle with some good olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast these in a 425 degree oven for about 45 minutes or until roasted, browned and quite soft.

While the veggies are roasting safely in your oven, heat up your homemade chicken stock (in my case, turkey stock) that’s tucked way in the back of your freezer. If you didn’t tuck any homemade stock in your freezer, no worry, you can use the canned stuff. Heat it up in a pot on the stove.

Once the veggies are done, combine them together with the chicken stock in small batches, in a food processor or blender until thoroughly pureed. Repeat this process until all fruits and veggies have been pureed.

Pour the pureed soup back into the pot on the stove and add the two remaining ingredients, curry powder and half and half. Heat on medium heat until heated through, stirring occasionally.

You can serve with a few condiments on the side such as nuts, coconut, cilantro, banana, a simple dollop of sour cream, or bare naked. Not you, the soup!

Serve with a green salad and a loaf of warm, crusty bread. And since my hubby just came back from the store – where I sent him for the fresh crusty bread – with a bit of salami and cheese, we’ll be having that as well.

I love fall!

8 comments:

Emily said...

This sounds great! I bought some store bought a while back and loved it and wondered about making my own. Now I don't have to search out a recipe! Is delicata a type of squash, such butternut or acorn, or a variety name?

Lisa said...

This sounds, and looks, delightful. I love the colorful vegetables for roasting. I also have a lot of squash resting on my kitchen counter and was about out of ideas. Thanks for this lovely recipe to try!

Cindy said...

Jemm, Delicata is a type of squash. Sometimes it's called Peanut or Bohemian squash. It's a bit sweet with a creamy texture. I meant to take a photo before I cut it up, but if you google it, you'll see some images.

Cindy said...

Lisa, Glad to swap recipes with you!

jazgal said...

Fabulous! I love using roasted veg for a very quick and robust soup - it is so easy! This one looks especially tasty with the apple, curry and cream addition. I've done winter veg - carrots, parsnips, celery root - all recommended. Haven't decided whether to do my own pumpkin pie this year - I am sorely tempted by Two Tarts limited edition, but we'll see.
Yum, yum, yum! I do love delicata, so dense and sweet, I usually just roast it without any seasoning. I guess acorn would would pretty well too.

Sharon said...

Looks yummy and sounds tasty! Now, you have me wondering whether delicata squash (also my favorite) would be an interesting substitute for yams in sweet potato pie.

Janet said...

I made your soup roday!
absolutely LOVELY

Susan said...

Mmmmm, looks yummy! I just tried a new soup recipe using butternut squash...it's a chunky Mexican-style soup. It was really good and I'm making it again Wednesday when the whole family is here. Also making black bean soup and Hungarian mushroom soup. I LOVE soup!!