Curried Butternut Squash Soup

Butternut squash. Some love it, others can’t stand it. The dictionary will tell you that butternut squash is a popular winter squash producing a bell-shaped fruit with sweet orange-yellow flesh. For those falling into the ‘can’t stand it’ group, some might guess that they haven’t been treated to the fruit’s marvelous versatility. Depending on the mood, butternut squash can be roasted, toasted, mashed, used in casseroles, breads and muffins or puréed for soups; it can be grilled or stuffed with a variety of ingredients.

   

Squash has been around for a very long time, found even in the tombs of ancient Egypt. A staple for Native Americans for more than 5000 years, it became a dietary mainstay for early Europeans who settled in America. But the story is a little different for butternut squash. The man who reportedly first developed this variety of squash was Charles A. Leggett, neither farmer nor scientist but an insurance man living in Waltham, Massachusetts. He began with a small garden in the late 1930s but it wasn’t until the mid 1940s that he developed the strain we call butternut squash. Basically, Leggett’s focus was on a crossing of the gooseneck squash with a variety called the Hubbard squash—another winter squash but with a green or yellow skin and hard-to-cut flesh. During the years of 1942-45 Leggett faced some challenges, but finally satisfied, he took his squash to the Waltham agricultural field station to show scientists there what he’d developed. They were delighted with the new variety of squash and asked Leggett to come up with a name for it. Feeling the squash was “smooth as butter and sweet as a nut,” Leggett decided to call it butternut squash.

I owe my fondness for butternut squash to my good friend K, who introduced it to me in a version she calls five-star squash using the Chinese inspired Five Star Powder, a combination of fennel seeds, star anise, ginger, cloves and cinnamon. Without doubt a mix that ignites an eye-opening jolt of the exotic, but not really a flavor that anyone would condemn as weird and foreign. But let’s expand the exotic by imagining butternut squash in a soup with curry. Those who like curry and eat it on occasion have probably already figured out that the flavor derives from a blend of turmeric, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, coriander, cumin, and fenugreek, all made pungent by the addition of ginger, chili, and pepper. It only gets better with the addition of butternut squash.

CURRIED BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped (about 2 cups)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 butternut squash (2½ pounds), peeled, seeded and cubed*

6 cups chicken broth

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon curry powder

½ teaspoon salt, more to taste

2 tablespoons honey

4 teaspoons plain low-fat yogurt for garnish

*Peeling a butternut squash, removing the seeds and cubing it is a troublesome task. An easier method is to use Marketside Butternut Squash in the 12 ounce bag. It comes ready to use without the hassle of wrestling with a whole squash. Two of the 12 ounce bags is sufficient.

Putting it all together

Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a 6-quart stockpot. Add onions and garlic and sauté until soft but not brown—6 or 7 minutes. Add the butternut squash, chicken broth, curry powder and salt and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until squash is tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in the honey and puree in a blender (in batches) until smooth. Season with salt to taste. Ladle into serving bowls and add a swirl of yogurt as garnish.

Serve it with some warm French bread and a green salad. Family and guests will be wowed.

Five Star Squash

On an early evening a couple of weeks ago, not really paying much attention to the time I innocently 'dropped in’ on some friends and caught them in the middle of dinner. My apologies got ignored as they dragged me to the table saying I was just in time and pouring me a bumper of cabernet. Even with good friends the feeling of barging in can be awkward for a few minutes, but both friends quickly dispelled all that with their usual warmth.

Not the first time I had enjoyed food at their table, and whatever the menu for this unexpected dinner there was little chance it would be anything but delicious. There was a platter of something unfamiliar in the center of the table and I was wondering what it might be when the host said, “Try some of the roasted butternut squash.” Squash is one of my favorite vegetables but usually it’s only summer squash or zucchini that my modest kitchen skills can handle. Thinking about it, I wasn’t even certain my imagination was painting an accurate picture of butternut squash. Was that the one that looks like a pale orange gourd and hard as a rock? “That’s the one,” said Fred. “Nothing complicated really. Pretty much stock ingredients except for the Chinese Five Star spice, and you can get that at Publix.”

Wonderful flavor, light with the exotic hint of Chinese spice. I asked for and got a written recipe and the next day went off to buy what I needed, mainly the squash and the Chinese Five Star. Aside from the big and rock hard butternut squash being slightly hard to cut, de-seed and peel, the preparation of this roasted squash turned out exactly as described—simple.

ROASTED BUTTERNUT SQUASH

Here’s what you need:

1 butternut squash (Peeled, with seeds removed a large squash will serve three or four.)

1 to 1½ tablespoons of olive oil

salt

pepper

1 teaspoon of Chinese Five Star spice

parchment paper

Preparation:

Cut the squash into 4-5 manageable sections.

Scrape the seeds and somewhat stubborn fibers out.

Peel the 4 or 5 pieces and then cut them into evenly sized chunks.

Put them into a large bowl, add the olive oil, salt, pepper and Chinese spice.

Toss and mix well until the pieces are well coated with oil and spices.

Pre-heat the oven to 400° and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Spread the chunks of squash out on the baking sheet.

Bake until soft and lightly browned, usually about 30 minutes.

This vegetable will match pretty much any main course, meat or fish and likely produce a hearty, “Hey, this squash is great!” from one or two at the table. Simple, inexpensive and healthy—what more can you ask for?

Gazpacho: A Summer Soup

The heat of summer is not far around the bend here in Florida and kitchen thoughts are gravitating toward cooler and lighter menus to match the hot days. Long a fan of chilled soups, I managed the loan of a new soup cookbook on Sunday, one including a handful of cold soup recipes. Perfect timing and just what’s needed to add a couple of new flavors to the summer table. It comes with an extra bonus in the form of recipes with all natural ingredients, each presented with beautiful photographs and a complete nutritional breakdown. All the soups are easy and fast to make without requiring a bagful of expensive ingredients and hours over the stove. The book is Andrew’s Favorite Soups for Wellness and Weight-Loss and it’s by Muriel Angot with Andrew Lessman. It’s available at HSN.com.

The soup recipes are all characterized by originality and flavors off the beaten path. Here are a few examples: Roasted red, yellow and orange pepper soup, carrot, ginger, turmeric and coconut soup, butternut squash soup with apple and curry, coral lentil soup with cinnamon and cumin, hearty turkey chili, green curry Thai soup with shrimp. Because it’s a favorite of mine, and one I haven’t made in a long time, I decided to make the Gazpacho Andaluz “New-Style” Soup. 

Gazpacho is a cold based raw vegetable soup that originated in the region of Andalusia in southern Spain, one served mostly during the summer months for its refreshing qualities. It has always been popular with field workers as a way of cooling off during summer, and of using the available fresh vegetables and fruit. There are many modern variations of gazpacho, and from the “new-style” in its name, I suspect that the recipe below falls into that category.

GAZPACHO ANDALUZ “NEW-STYLE” SOUP

Ingredients:

4 ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded and cut into pieces

3 garlic cloves

1 medium orange pepper, chopped

1½ medium red pepper, chopped (reserve ½ for garnish)

1½ medium cucumber, peeled, seeded, chopped (reserve ½ for garnish)

½ small cantaloupe or ¼ watermelon cut in pieces and seeded

½ small red onion, chopped (reserve for garnish)

1 tsp tomato concentrate (tomato paste)

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 tbsp red wine vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

croutons for garnish

Preparation:

Spear the tomatoes (one at a time) and hold them in boiling water for a minute or two until the skin loosens and can be easily pulled off. Put the tomato in a food processor with the garlic, peppers, cucumber and melon. Blend at lowest speed until smooth. Add tomato concentrate (paste), olive oil, vinegar, and salt and pepper. Process until thoroughly mixed. Pour into a large bowl and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, but not more than 10 hours. Serve garnished with chopped onion, cucumber and red pepper, and three or four croutons.

This recipe makes 10 cups. A one-cup serving is only ninety calories and a nutritional bombshell. Obviously, if served at dinner the soup is going to be too little for a filling meal. I serve it with a green salad sprinkled with shreds of roasted chicken. This makes a delicious and filling meal. Bon Appétit!