Tuesday, January 11, 2011

butternut squash & carrot soup

Tasty, easy to make and healthy.  Serves 6-8.
You will need:
  • 1 large butternut squash
  • 3-4 large carrots
  • 1 garlic head
  • 1 large yellow onion
  • 900 ml chicken or veggie stock (reduced sodium best)
  • olive oil ~ 3 tbsp
  • butter ~ 2 tbsp
  • salt ~ 1 pinch
  • freshly ground pepper
  • Parmesan cheese freshly grated
What to do:
  1. Preheat oven to 425° F.  Wash the butternut squash and carrots.  (You have the option of peeling them but I don't - its more work and besides, the skin has fibre and nutrients). Cut it into cubes (you want the veggies to be the same size so they cook evenly) and toss in a large bowl with 2 tbsp olive oil, salt and pepper.  Place it onto a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil.
  2. Cut off the tip of the garlic head.  Drizzle a little bit of olive oil on the top and add a pinch of salt and pepper, then wrap it with aluminum foil.  Put it in a corner of the baking sheet.
  3. Place baking sheet in the middle rack.  Bake for about 45 min - 1 hour, check before taking out as the squash and carrots should be fork tender and light golden brown, not burnt.  Once cooled enough to touch, you can spoon out the butternut squash from its peel if desired.
  4. Dice the onion.  In a large pot, heat butter and 1 tbsp olive oil on medium heat.  Add the onions and stir occasionally. Once the onions are translucent and golden, add the roasted carrots and butternut squash.  Turn the roasted garlic head upside down and squeeze the cloves into the pot.  Stir a few times, then add the stock.  There should be enough liquid to just cover the veggies.
  5. Turn the burner to medium high.  Once it boils, you can turn it down to medium and simmer for 30-40 minutes.  
  6. You can use a blender, food processor, or immersion hand blender to make the soup smooth.  It is best to do this when the soup is cooled to almost room temperature.  I have done it hot in a blender but you must be very careful and hold the blender's lid down with a kitchen cloth!  
  7. Once smooth, taste.  Add pepper or salt to your liking. Reheat in the pot until desired temperature.  You can add a little bit of cream or butter to make it more rich and silky. Garnish with Parmesan cheese shavings and enjoy!  


13 comments:

  1. Do you keep the skin on the butternut squash as well? It seems so tough. Does the oven soften it?

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  2. The oven definitely softens it! But you can take the peel off when its done in the oven (after it has cooled of course!) - just scoop off the flesh of the squash with a spoon.

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  3. A request! A ginger chicken recipe please!!! Can't wait to see what you come up with! xo

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  4. Definitely will post one soon Jillian!

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  5. Mmmm I always want to make BS soup, but never do. You've inspired me.

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  6. This is the finest food related blog on the internet! Excellent job and keep the recipes coming!

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  7. Hi Tati,

    We made this last night with a few tweaks. We ended up using buttercup squash (by mistake) and used 2 sweet potatoes, 2 carrots, and some fresh ginger. It was honestly the best squash soup I've ever had. Thank you for this awesome recipe!

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  8. I finally tried to make your butternut carrot squash soup! However, I had to make a few adjustments, as I picked up the wrong squash! I had picked up a butterCUP squash, not a butterNUT squash. So to make up for the smaller squash, I added 2 sweet sweet potatoes. Also, I added a bit of cayenne pepper and ginger in the 'butter melting part of your instructions' to give it a bit of a kick. I took a pic... check it out here: http://yfrog.com/gyedxilj . I garnished it with a bit of cream and parsley. It was soo delicious, and your recipe and instructions were fool proof, so it made it so easy to make! Definitely going to do it again! Thanks for the help! :)

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  9. I'm waiting for your goat cheese dip and delicious phyllo twists!!!! Maybe even your red curry dishes from heaven. Yes!!! this is very exciting;)

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  10. Tatianna recipe as requested for Schezwan Sauce

    Finely chop 2Tbsp each of garlic, ginger, celery Mix together.
    Add 4Tbsp Lee Kum Kee chili garlic sauce and 2 Tbsp chopped hot peppers. Mix in with first mixture.
    Heat 1/2 c veg oil and put in all above ingredients. Mix. Can keep for months as long as oil covers it. Add it to anything to give a kick. best of luck

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  11. Thanks Joanne! can't wait to try it!

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