Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Butternut Squash Soup to soothe away Winters cold

There is something about butternut squash that is just perfect for cold days. It is an incredibly warm and filling squash and with it being such a rich source of vitamins, fiber, potassium and other things wonderful for your body, it is no wonder that this buttery goodness is the most popular squash. This particular recipe I have been preparing for 6 years now and it has now become a staple in the Hunter house for winter. It is perfect for cold days and also for days when someone is feeling under the weather. 


Butternut Squash Soup
3 lbs butternut squash
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 leek, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
29 oz chicken broth
2 large potatoes, peeled and quartered
1 Tbsp flour
2 Tbsp butter
1 c. milk
1/2 c. dry sherry, or dry white wine
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/8 tsp ground all spice
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground ginger
s/p to taste




Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Pour thin layer of water into a baking dish and place squash cut sides down. Bake for 40 minutes or until a fork can easily pieces the flesh. Cool. 

*For the photograph I did turn the butternut after it had cooked but make sure you cook it facedown so that it doesn't dry out.




Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion, leek and garlic and saute for a few minutes until tender.





Pour in broth and add potatoes. Bring to a boil and cook for 20 minutes until potatoes are soft.




Add butternut squash and mash with a hand masher so that chunks are small. Then either use a hand immersible blender or an electric blender to puree soup. I only puree 3/4 of the soup so that there are still some chunks in the soup.




Make white sauce but melting the butter into a pot and mixing in the flour until mixture becomes a buttery paste.





Slowly pour in milk and heat on medium low heat until the white sauce begins to thicken. Pour in sherry and spices and heat through but DO NOT BOIL.



Pour white sauce into butternut squash mix and heat through and serve.

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