Sunday, October 21, 2007

Squash Soup - My favorite healthy fall indulgence

I subscribe to more food magazines than any non-obsessed person could fathom and I'm sometimes surprised by how often they mirror each other. Now, if pressed, I could give you a philosophical rundown of how each magazine is different from its competitors, but that's not the point. November issues always have a turkey on the cover. No surprise there. December is often cookie-focused. Again, duh. But what I really like is the almost certain inclusion of butternut sqush soup at least once a year. No, this isn't an actual fact, but a quick search of my favorite food magazines shows I'm onto something:

Curried Butternut Squash Soup Bisque - Bon Appetit, Feb. 2007
Gingerd Butterut Squash Soup with Spicy Pecan Cream - Food & Wine, Nov. 2007
Butternut Squash Soup with Apple and Smoked Cheddar - Food & Wine, Feb. 2007
Roasted Pear Buttenut Soup with Crumbled Stilton - Eating Well, Oct./Nov. 2006
Butternut Squash Soup with Apple and Bacon - Fine Cooking, Oct./Nov. 2005

And those are just from the last year or so... Now, there's a clear prejudice toward using butternut squash, but I have fond memories of acorn squash from my childhood and so that's the one that I keep coming back to. We normally ate it microwaved or baked with brown sugar. It was delicious, for sure, but always seemed like dessert to me. Now, even though I don't want to eat sugar for my vegetable, I still can't get used to eating the squash in more savory preparations, so I compromise and try to make a less sweet version.

My squash soup is a thick puree of roasted acorn squash and apple. I add a few other ingredients for balance, toss it in a blender—my trusty Vitamix—and call it a day. I didn't really keep a close eye on the ingredients I was using. (Still not in the habit of aithuflly logging everything I cook so that I can write about it here...) But here's a close approximation. I don't relal encourage strictly following a recipe anyway when cooking, so this is very fitting of my cooking style. E-mail me at jamie@lemonjuiceandoliveoil.com
or just leave a comment if you have any questions.


Acorn Squash and Apple Soup




1 ea acorn squash (skin removed, seeds discarded and cut into 1" pieces
2 ea Macintosh apples (cored and cut into 1" pieces with skin left on)
1" slice red onion (cut into 1" pieces)
2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
2 pinches salt (or to taste)
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
extra virgin olive oil as needed
1 Tbsp. fresh ginger (peeled and minced)
2 cups chicken stock

1. Preheat oven to 450°F
2. Place squash, apple and onion in a single layer on a 4-sided cookie sheet, roasting pan or jelly-roll pan, but keep all items separate. Drizzle with the oil and sprinkle evenly with sugar, cinnamon and salt. Place in oven to roast.
3. Check every 5-10 minutes. Apples and onions will finish first. Remove the apples when they become soft, but before they lose their shape. Remove onion before they become too dry and papery. The squash will take up to 30 minutes. It should be soft and starting to darken in color. You'll save yourself cleaning, if you remove the vegetables directly to the blender.
4. When everything is out of the oven and in the blender, add the ginger and chicken broth and puree. The final thickness will vary depending on the size of your squash and apples. I suggest adding only part of the chicken stock at first and then adding more as desired to reach your preferred consistency.

Notes:
- If desired, garnish with a couple thin apple slices. Cut them immediately prior to serving or, to work ahead, immerse them in a solution of water and lemon juice to prevent browning.
- Use more or less ginger and cinnamon to suit your taste. You could also omit the ginger and cinnamon and experiment with other spices like cumin or curry powder.
- Try adding additional roasted vegetables like sweet potato or carrot. Or, sub in pears for the apples.

1 comment:

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