My take on Satiny Butternut Squash Soup from a cookbook that's now potentially forgotten, 100 Great soup, Stew & Chili Recipes from LHJ. A pretty good cookbook of recipes although the time estimates for prepping the ingredients are wildly optimistic. I've adjusted the recipe a bit by adding more curry powder than the original recipe and using sour cream as a finish instead of low-fat yogurt.
Ingredients:
2 Tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
2 teaspoons curry powder
3 cans (~14 ounces each) chicken broth or homemade chicken stock (usually have some frozen and it's better than the canned broth). You can also use vegetable stock or broth for a true vegetarian version and it's equally yummy
2 large butternut squash, peeled, seeded and coarsely chopped
2 baking apples, peeled, cored, and coarsely chopped (I usually use granny smith)
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
Sour cream dollop for garnish
Melt the butter in a large pot and add onion, carrot, and curry powder. Cook until onion is softened. Add broth, squash, apples, and pepper. Simmer until vegetables are tender. Time varies depending on how big your coarsely chopped squash pieces are. There's little danger of over cooking, so perhaps 30 minutes or so. Poke larger squash pieces with a fork to see if they are soft to tell if they are done.
Puree the whole shebang. The original recipe calls for transferring the soup in batches to a blender or a food processor. This is where the blender wand comes in. I was given one as a gift and honestly thought at the time, "Great, another useless kitchen gadget." But for this recipe it's perfect and honestly makes it so much easier it's worth it just for this soup. Use the blender wand and puree the soup right in the pot.
It's a great soup to make ahead because it reheats easily and the flavors are just as good. It's good with a nice baguette and, not being a bread baker, I prefer to stop by La Mie to get a loaf. Serve it up in bowls and put a dollop of sour cream in each bowl then use a toothpick to create interesting swirls. Voila! Art that's oh so tasty.