We’ve been feeling the pressure at the office. Our big winter snowstorms kept us from coming to work for one week, and created piles of snow on the ground and piles of things to do at work. I thought I’d brighten up the day for some of my co-workers, and made this soup and homemade flaky biscuits (recipe coming soon) for lunch. Mission accomplished! Everyone was comforted by the surprise lunch.
Spices and ginger give the soup some warmth, orange zest brightens the flavor, apple and brown sugar lend sweetness, and the butternut squash and carrot provide an amazing color. Perfect for what I hope will be our last winter days before spring finally gets here. The good news is that this soup is low in calories, even with the cream which you can leave out if you’d like.
Butternut Squash Soup
Ingredients:
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 stalk celery, chopped
• 1 large carrot, chopped
• 1 granny smith apple or any other apple, peeled, cored and chopped
• 1 garlic clove
• 2 cups butternut squash, chopped
• 1 inch piece of ginger, peeled
• 3 cups chicken broth
• ½ teaspoon curry powder
• ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon orange zest
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 to 2 tablespoons heavy cream or light cream, optional
Procedure:
1. Add the olive oil to a large pot over medium heat, sauté the onion, celery, carrot, and apple. Season with salt and pepper. Sauté for 5-10 minutes, or until soft.
2. Add the garlic clove, butternut squash, ginger, chicken broth, curry powder, cinnamon, brown sugar, and orange zest. Simmer for about 20 minutes over low heat, or until all vegetables are very soft.
3. Remove ginger, or leave it in if you like your soup to have some heat to it. Puree with immersion blender, or in blender in batches. Blend until smooth. Transfer back to pot. Add the heavy cream, if using. Taste and add salt/pepper/brown sugar if necessary. Makes about 6 cups. The recipe can be easily doubled.
One Vanilla Bean 