About a month ago I was at a pot luck and someone brought a curried butternut squash soup. It was pretty spectacular and it got me thinking about a butternut squash soup I had made several years ago. All I could remember was that it also contained bell peppers. I was positive I had saved the recipe so I went diving into the pit that is the box containing all of my loose recipe sheets. I came up empty handed. Not an overly devastating turn of events, but not what I had been hoping for.
Since my recipe pit proved unhelpful, I turned to internet world. Apparently, in the world of butternut squash soup, most people are rocking the same playbook. The crazier varieties may contain an apple, but at the core we have butternut squash, roasted red peppers, an onion, and some savory spices.
All of these items could easily be procured with a quick trip to the grocery. I however, had a bit of a leg up. There was still some stock in the freezer and it had turned out extremely well, full of flavor and would certainly save me from having to use extra spices as well as the onion. Sold!
Butternut Squash and Red Bell Pepper Soup
Ingredients:
6 lbs. Butternut squash - peeled and cubed
3 red bell peppers
3 qts chicken stock
Cinnamon, nutmeg, olive oil, salt, pepper - all to taste
Directions:
Okay, I'll be honest, this is a bit of an involved and at times messy recipe. Therefore, step one, take a deep, calming, centering breath. Now get cooking.
Set your oven to broil. Cut the tops off of the peppers, remove the seeds, cut into quarters, and season with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Place onto a baking sheet and broil for 10 minutes.
Next comes the funky bit, using that tin foil you lined your baking sheet with, wrap the peppers into a pouch and let them steam themselves for another ten minutes. This will loosen the skin and make peeling easier. Peel the peppers and set aside.
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| Notice the increase in wrinkles? Steaming helps to separate the skin from the meat, allowing you to peel it off a bit easier. |
Reduce the oven heat to 375F.
Using a very sharp knife, cut the top and bottom off of your squash then cut in half. Scoop out the seeds. Now, using a VERY sturdy vegetable peeler, peel the squash and then cut into cubes. Place onto a foil lined baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg, roast for 30 minutes.
Put your stock in a pot and add the squash as soon as it's finished in the oven. Add the peppers and then bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes, until the squash is tender. It should fall apart as soon as you stick a fork in it.
As if things hadn't been messy enough, now it's time to bust out the blender. If you have an emersion blender this will not be messy, you'll just stick the thing in the pot and blend until smooth. I, however, am a lazy and stingy individual who see no need to purchase something I will only use once every couple of months. I already have cabinets full of equipment like that. So, standard blender it is.
If you are going the same route as me, you will want to let it cool a bit. Then, in small batches, blend soup until smooth. When it has magically become the desired consistency, give it a taste test. Add any additional spices you deem necessary. If you are serving immediately, put back in the pot and bring to a boil, otherwise transfer the soup to an air tight container and chill until ready for its squashy goodness.
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| I garnished with a bit of light cream. |
Six pounds of squash will make this soup taste strongly of butternut squash. If you like the squash, I feel confident stating you will this soup. The key with how I made it though, is the strong stock.
If you are not completely confident that your stock is robust, you'll want to add an onion and some additional spices. The onion should be roasted along with the squash and once you've simmered everything together, before you blend, I would give it a taste to see if some additional salt, pepper, nutmeg, and maybe even some thyme should find its way into your soup.
Regardless of how you season, this is a great soup on a cold day.
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