soup's on

I'm no Sophisticated Pie, but I made a tasty soup for dinner tonight and wanted to share the recipe. Yesterday, in addition to the mini pumpkins I also got a couple of beautiful squashes. I've made this recipe a few times and it's always good for a cool fall day.


Butternut Squash Soup

1 medium butternut squash (about 2 1/4 pounds)
Vegetable oil
1 medium onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 cups chicken broth
water, as needed
Salt and pepper to taste
Sour cream for garnish

Preheat oven to 400F. Cut squash in half lengthwise, and scoop out the seeds. Arrange the halves cut side down in roasting pan that has been lightly oiled. Bake squash in the oven for 40-45 minutes or until very tender. Set aside to cool. When the squash is completely cool, scoop the flesh from the skin. While the squash is baking, cook the onion and the ginger in the butter in a saucepan, over moderately low heat, for 5 minutes or until the onion is softened, Add the broth and simmer the mixture for 10 minutes, covered. Add the squash pulp to the sauce pan. Transfer the mixture to a blender or food processor, in batches, and puree until smooth. Add enough water to achieve the desired consistency, and salt and pepper to taste. Return the soup to the sauce pan and cook over moderate heat until it is hot. Garnish each portion with the heaping teaspoon of low-fat sour cream.

I also like to garnish the soup with toasted seeds. To roast the seeds rinse them a few times with cool water. Let seeds soak for a few minutes in salt water. Spread the seeds out onto a baking sheet and put in oven with the Squash for the last 10 min of baking.

Enjoy!!