Happy Thanksgiving!!!
We had this lovely soup as part of our Thanksgiving dinner. It was truly delicious, with a superbly velvet texture. Not a lot of ingredients in it, not a lot of spices to flavour it with, nothing to interfere with the subtle buttery taste of the squash. The soup's simplicity contributed to its scrumptiousness. The recipe is based on one from Jaques Pepin, chef extraordinaire.
To make the soup, I took the easy route and bought my squash peeled and chopped and ready to cook. Also, as a special treat, I substituted some of the cream with coconut milk. We made it a few weeks ago just to test the recipe, and at that time, we only used cream. I must admit the soup tastes great either way!
Ingredients:
4 cups chopped butternut squash
3 leeks, cleaned well and chopped (use the white and light green parts)
1 onion, chopped
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger root
1 teaspoon black pepper
salt to taste
3 cups vegetable stock
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/2 heavy cream
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup chopped pistachios
Directions:
- In a heavy soup pan heat the olive oil.
- Add the onions and leeks and sauté for about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add the squash, the ginger and half the pepper and sauté for 3 more minutes, stirring.
- Add the stock. Cover the pot and simmer for about 25 to 30 minutes, until the squash is soft.
- Add salt to taste, and then add the rest of the black pepper. Taste and let boil for about one more minute.
- Let cool slightly and blend with an immersion blender until the soup is smooth.
- The soup can be cooked up to this point a day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.
- When ready to serve, add the cream, the coconut milk, and the cinnamon.
- Mix well, heat, garnish with chopped pistachios and serve!
Happy Thanksgiving!!!
