butternut squash soup

ok how have I not blogged since SEPTEMBER? :(

shame on me.

I'm not even gonna go there and say "For my New Year's Resolution, I'm going to blog once a week!"...... cause we all know that isn't gonna happen.  But for reals, I'm gonna get better y'all.

To kick start 2013, let me share one of the FAVES from this household: Butternut Squash Soup :)  Oh the joy of eating vegetables!  YUMMMMMMMM :)

INGREDIENTS:

Olive oil

1 little onion (or half a medium onion)

2 garlic cloves

1 medium butternut squash

2-4 red potatoes OR 1 Idaho russet (if I were y'all I wouldn't worry about peeling the potatoes if they are red BUT if you use a russet, I'd peel that bad boy)

1 pint homemade pumpkin puree OR 1 15ish ounce can pureed pumpkin (not pie filling)

good sprinkling of kosher salt & black pepper

1, 15-ounce can of chicken broth/vegetable broth/whatev. ...heck you could probs just use water if desperate :)

a teeny bit of rubbed sage (I crumbled one dry sage leaf I dried from our garden this summer. Maybe it was 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon?)

some thyme (again I used dried stuff I saved from this summer's garden- I used probably 4-5 sprigs worth; it was probably 1/2 teaspoon)

2-4 Tbsp. dark brown sugar (or light, but I like dark better)

a couple shakes of cinnamon (maybe 1/4 tsp. total?)

teeny shake of pumpkin pie spice (if you don't have this you can do a teeny bit of nutmeg, or frankly, just forget it altogether.) ;)

1 pat of unsalted butter (not margarine!...) (...less than a Tbsp) 

Parmigiano-Reggiano, freshly grated, for serving

FIRST, PREP! :)

• Peel the butternut squash.  Cut it in half; remove the seeds and all the stringy fibers (just like you do with a pumpkin when making a Jack-o-Lantern). :)
• Dice the onion; peel and mince the garlic.
• Again, if you have a Russet potato, peel it and slice; if you're using Golds or Reds just wash and slice them.

THEN, COOK!

• In your big soup pot/Dutch oven/cauldron/whatever you use :)....... saute the onion in the olive oil just for a bit till they look a little more translucent & tender. Add the garlic and stir; saute only for about a minute (garlic burns easily)!  Give all this a sprinkle of salt & pepper.
•  Add the cubed butternut squash AND the potato slices. Stir all this around so it coats nicely with the sauteed onion/garlic.
• Add the can of broth. Then, fill up your can with water and add slowly till everything is almost covered with liquid (don't drown it though. Just get it almost covered).
• Add your Thyme and Sage.  Maybe season with a little more S & P. :)
• Let all this come to a boil and then turn down your heat and simmer this till everything is tender. (maybe 10 minutes at the least, 25 mins at the most).
• When everything is tender, turn your heat off, and puree the soup with an immersion blender OR transfer everything, in batches, to a food processor or blender (NOTE: I've only ever done this with an immersion blender, so I have no idea how much of a pain the other two pieces of equipment are?.... If you have a FP I'd go for that first; use a blender at last resort).  Puree the soup until everything is "creamy" and bisque-like. :)
• Add your pumpkin puree, and stir (the soup should be blazin' hot and will heat your pumpkin puree in no time).
• Carefully add your dark brown sugar, cinnamon, (and pump. pie spice if using) to taste. START SMALL: as my Momma would say, "You can always add, but you can't take away!!!"
• Season with salt and pepper only if necessary!
• Lastly, if you're feeling naughty (which I usually am in this dimension of life), add a pat of butter to the pot. :)  Cause a pat of butter makes most things BETTER. :) But again, if you're counting cals and are trying to be good, by all means, leave the butter out. :)

Serve in bowls with freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.  And enjoy something that is not only GOOD FOR you---but also GOOD! :) 

p.s. while you grate some Parm on your bowl, watch this classic Italian TV commercial, advertising for Parmigiano-Reggiano. :)  Oh I LOVE Italians. and their cheese. :) <3 (p.s. thanks Beccs for introducing me to this vid) :)