Cream of Butternut Squash and Apple Soup

This is the first post in a new series at YHOB. While a may seem a bit off topic, I think it’s something we can all related to. Afterall, our kitchen’s need to do more than just look good, right?

As I discover yummy AND easy recipes, I’ll share them here on YHOB. But I’ll do more than just parrot the recipe…I’ll explain it in SIMPLE terms w/any shortcuts I find built in. Now I’m no chef…I don’t even play one on TV. So if I can do this, so can you! And I won’t share any recipes that I haven’t tried myself!

As fair warning, my Mother taught me that “if I can’t cook well, at least present well.” So we’ll include a few tips on how to make the most of your presentation as well. Ok, without further adiu, here’s a fabulous soup that is easy enough even for me.

Cream of Butternut Squash & Apple Soup

I found this recipe from Williams-Sonoma. It’s much easier than I thought. they only scary part for me was using the food processor towards the end. It serves 12.

Ingredients:

• 3 tbs Butter
• 1 Bermuda Onion, chopped
• 3 lbs peeled, seeded & cubed Butternut Squash – might I recommend buying it pre-cubed in the freezer section?
• 6 cups Chicken Stock
• 4 Granny Smith Apples, cored, peeled and chopped
• 4 pinches of Spanish Saffron threads (about 1 tsp)
• Pinch of freshly grated Nutmeg
• 2 Cups Heavy Cream
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions

1. In a large soup pot (medium heat) – melt the butter. Once it’s foamy, add the chopped onions and sauté 4-6 minutes.
2. Add the squash and chicken stock, bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low for 30 minutes.
3. Add the chopped apples, saffron and nutmeg and simmer for 15 minutes.
4. Poor the soup mixture into a large bowl, then in batches, poor it into a food processor or blender and puree until smooth, then return to the pot. Yes…this part is messy, and scared me at first, but just go with it, and plan to clean up when you’re done.
5. Stir in the heavy cream, and season with salt and pepper.

Serving Tips:

• To dress it up a bit, you can garnish it with croutons and a pinch of chopped fresh herbs, like parsley or sage.
• If you own a lovely soup tureen, now’s the time to show it off. Otherwise, just serve in individual bowls.

Ironically, when I did a search to see what types of tureen’s are “in” – basic white seems to be the order of the day. For example:

Anyone noticing a trend here? Oh wait…Crate and Barrel does have another option: texture!

Whatever you choose to serve your soup in, I hope you enjoy this recipe more than I enjoyed cleaning up after making it. 😉

But I must say, it was worth it…yum.

Let me know if you try it, or if you have any other tips that you’d like to share!