Roasted Winter Squash and Apple Soup


Do you ever get sidetracked by perfectionism?

You know, you say to yourself, "My family's not going to eat any processed foods."  So you go to Whole Foods and fill your shopping cart with colorful organic fruits and vegetables and free range chicken and bulk quinoa and you envision this bounty of healthful eating.   Then all of a sudden it's 2:30 and you have to pick the kids up from school and drop one off at ballet and quiz the next one for her spelling test and then pick the son up from basketball and then go back to ballet to pick up the daughter and then, in an instant, you realize that it's 6:30 and you have nothing cooked for dinner.  In desperation, (and amongst hungry cries of MOM, I'M STARVING!) instead of serving something semi-convenient that was moderately tasty and healthy, you end up serving a frozen cheese pizza and a can of green beans?

**Crickets**

That doesn't happen to you?

Oh.

OK.

Well, Sunday, while my husband was busy being the "Fun Dad", taking the kids to the park and fishing, I decided to stay home and cook through all the good intentions that were staring at me from the refrigerator.

The first recipe I tried was this Roasted Squash and Apple Soup.  I was pleasantly surprised by how easy it was to make.  The oven does all the work for you!


Simply chop up all your ingredients, toss with oil and kosher salt, and roast until they look like this.


And this.

You can smell the delicious caramelization process happening.
You feel euphoric because your healthy intentions are now being realized.

Next, stop what you are doing and give your remaining daughter a break from her book report and take her to the park.  Make sure you come home after dark so that you can't take any more food pictures!

When you return, put half of the vegetables and the chicken stock in a blender and blend away.
Repeat with remaining ingredients.
Adjust seasonings.


Save out one bowl of delicious soup so you can take a picture of it when there is light.


This soup is fresh food at its finest.  As the soup hits your tongue you can taste the sweetness of the squash and then the apples.  The bite finishes with the savory taste of caramelized onions.  Add chili powder or cumin if you'd like, but I thought this was delicious all on its own.




Roasted Winter Squash and Apple Soup
Adapted from Dr. Andrew Weil's book "The Healthy Kitchen"

INGREDIENTS:

1 large winter squash (about 2 1/2 pounds) such as butternut, peeled, seeded and cut into 2-inch pieces
2 medium onions, peeled and quartered
3 cloves garlic, peeled
2 apples, such as Granny Smith, peeled and quartered
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt
Chili powder, cumin or smoked paprika for seasoning (optional)
4 cups Chicken Stock

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  In a large roasting pan, toss squash, onions, garlic and apples with oil to coat.  Season well with kosher salt and other seasonings, if using.  Roast, stirring every 10 minutes, until vegetables are fork-tender and lightly browned, about 40 minutes.

Transfer half the vegetables and two cups of the stock to a food processor or blender and puree until smooth.  Repeat with remaining vegetables and broth.

Return pureed mixture to pot, thinning soup with stock if necessary.  Season with salt and seasonings.  Bring to a simmer over medium-low heat.  Serve immediately.  Garnish with Greek Yogurt and Pepitos.


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Comments

Worse yet, you make your daughter make the pizza cause you're still working...

Gorgeous photos, I want a bowl!
Why yes, I have those intentions all the time. Like today. We're having DELIVERED pizza cause I'm too tired to cook those organic veggies and quinoa :) This soup sound like something I need to make. Like tomorrow. For lunch :) YUM!
Marcy said…
This looks so delicious. I loved your description--those perfect intentions have gotten me quite a few times. Beautiful photos!
Anonymous said…
That looks delicious! I imagine that roasting the vegetables would really intensify the flavors. I'm hosting a weekly blog carnival specifically for soups, stocks and chowders, every Sunday. I would love it if you would come over and post this recipe. Here's a link with more info.
http://easynaturalfood.com/2011/10/17/introducing-sunday-night-soup-night/
I hope to see you there!
Debbie
Tanya said…
This looks great and I have been looking for a recipe for soup with squash or pumpkin. I think this is the one. Thanks for sharing.
Miz Helen said…
I love the Squash and Apple combination for this great soup! Thank you so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday. Hope you are having a great week end and please come back soon!
Miz Helen
Mae B said…
this looks incredible, I can almost smell it! love the addition of apples...never would have thought of that. great recipe, thanks for sharing!
xx
NatureFae said…
yummy!! Thank you! I had a butternut squash that I wasn't sure what to do with and then just happened upon this recipe while looking at other crafty things! Very Tasty, and very healthy too!
Kim McCallie said…
What a gorgeous color! I would love to have a nice bowl of this for dinner tonight. Looks delicious! Thanks for sharing on Sweet Indulgences Sunday.
Anonymous said…
This sounds wonderful for the cool Colorado days we've been having.

Thanks for linking up to Friday Food on Momtrends.com last week!
This looks delicious! If you get a second, I'd love to have you link up to my party at http://scrapbookingez.blogspot.com/2011/11/anything-goes-linky-party_17.html. Thanks for sharing!
This looks so good I'll just HAVE to try it! andrea@townandprairie

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