Don't you just love a bowl of soup in the wintertime? After braving the outdoors, trudging through snow, and getting blown around by frosty winds, it's nice to come in and ladle up some comforting, warming soup. And not only is this particular soup comforting and warming, it's also easy -- so easy I made it while I was cooking us something else for dinner one night. (Squash is one of the many vegetables I can't get Jeff to touch, so I made the soup to take for lunch for the week.)
This is another recipe from The French Women Don't Get Fat Cookbook
. I decided to try it because my favorite butternut squash soup is one my dad makes, and it has squash and apples in it just like this one. The soup was reminiscent of the one I've had at home. The main flavor is the squash, which is followed by a hint of onion and a glimpse of carrot and herbs. The original recipe calls for nutmeg, but I don't like my soup to taste like pie, so I left it out.
. I decided to try it because my favorite butternut squash soup is one my dad makes, and it has squash and apples in it just like this one. The soup was reminiscent of the one I've had at home. The main flavor is the squash, which is followed by a hint of onion and a glimpse of carrot and herbs. The original recipe calls for nutmeg, but I don't like my soup to taste like pie, so I left it out.
Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium yellow onion, roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 sprigs fresh thyme
3 fresh sage leaves, plus more for garnish
1 medium (2 to 2 1/2 pounds) butternut squash, peeled, halved, seeds and strings discarded, and cut into 1-inch pieces (I used frozen, partially roasted squash I had leftover from another recipe)
6 baby carrots, roughly chopped1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and chopped
4 to 5 cups chicken broth
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Preparation
In a large pot, heat the oil and butter over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute until softened, about 4 minutes.
Add the thyme and sage, and cook for another minute.
Add the squash, carrots, apple, and 4 cups of chicken broth.
Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer for about 20 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
Remove thyme sprigs and sage.
Pour the soup into a food processor, and process until smooth.
I found the soup consistency to be just right, but the recipe recommends adding the final cup of broth if you want to thin it out.
Season to taste, garnish with fried sage leaves (if desired), and serve hot.
The soup is so luxurious, almost creamy, without the addition of any cream. I really enjoyed it and loved it best with the fried sage leaves on top. And while it's not the healthiest thing to do, after I fried some sage leaves to top off some leftover soup, I rewarmed the soup in the same pot, mixing in all of that nutty brown butter. This was fabulous!
What's your favorite winter soup?