Butternut-Acorn Squash and Sweet Potato Soup

Nothing says fall like rich, hearty, warm, luscious soups. It's raining (or snowing) outside and you are curled up cozy with a fire going, something yummy on the stove, chilling and reading a book under you're favorite blanker right?

Of course! I mean, that is the best part of soup! You can throw together a bunch of ingredients and sit back and relax for awhile.

I had a butternut squash chillin' in the fridge that I had intended to use to make a pasta creamy squashy dish that involves wild mushrooms. MMMM Mushrooms.

I digress.

There isn't enough there to make a whole pot of soup, but maybe I could combine some other stuff with it...Hmmmm there is an acorn squash that I bought...ummm....let me think...ummmm...well, it's still ok, and some sweet potatoes.

Those 3 sounds good together.

So we need:
1 butternut squash
1 acorn squash
2 sweet potatoes
4c chicken or veg broth
2c milk or half and half (i used fat free half and half)
1 onion cut into small pieces
3 cloves garlic, murdered thoroughly
a little smoked gouda to sprinkle on top
salt and pepper to taste

Let's get down to business. We must cook the squash an potatoes. Get out your handy dandy baking sheet. Slice the squash' in half and clean. If you garden, save a few of those seeds for the garden next year. Slice the sweet potatoes in half as well.

Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Put in oven uncovered and bake about 30-45 mins at 350 or until squishy.

When squash is about done, saute onion and garlic (poor murdered garlic) in a tablespoon of butter, salt and pepper until onion is thoroughly cooked through. Add chicken stock and let simmer while squash finishes.

Take squash out of oven and let cool a little, enough you can handle it. Mind you, I don't wait. I just dig right in and say ouch a lot. I'm impatient.

Scoop out flesh from all veggies and discard skins, add flesh into pot.

*Giggle* Flesh..

It's like flesh... you know...

Oh nevermind...

Add the milk and heat.

So now you have options. There are a few ways of handling this.
Option 1: If you have an immersion blender (the stick) the blend away. Make it all kinds of creamy and yummy by liquifying the veggies.
Option 2: If you have a regular blender and do not like chunky butternut squash soup, then scoop the flesh into the blender and get it al creamy then add it to the onions and broth, then add the milk.
Option 3: (what i did because I am immersion blender-less and my regular blender I got mad at for being stupid and put in the giveaway box) Use a whisk to break up the squash/potato in the soup pot. You get a well textured soup, but not creamy.

Heat thoroughly and serve. I topped mine with some shredded smoked gouda and a sprinkle of parsley. The parsley was mainly to make it look all pretty for the pictures...but it didn't taste half bad either :-)

Pair with some french bread or a spinach salad. (make salad while squash is cooking and chill) MMMMM.

This, by the way, can easily be adapted to a crock pot (peel and chunk the veggies and dump into crock with liquids) or can cook for a length of time on low heat. You know, so you can finish that book.



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Butternut-Acorn Squash and Sweet Potato Soup______________________

1 butternut squash
1 acorn squash
2 medium sweet potatoes
1 onion
3 cloves garlic
4c broth (chicken or veggie)
2c milk (or half and half)
salt and pepper
1/4c shredded smoked gouda

Cut squash in half and potatoes. Brush or spray with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast in oven uncovered at 350 for 30-45 mins. Saute onion in stock pot with garlic. Add broth. When squash and potatoes are soft, scoop out flesh and follow one of 3 options.


Option 1: If you have an immersion blender (the stick) the blend away. Make it all kinds of creamy and yummy by liquifying the veggies.
Option 2: If you have a regular blender and do not like chunky butternut squash soup, then scoop the flesh into the blender and get it al creamy then add it to the onions and broth, then add the milk.
Option 3: Use a whisk to break up the squash/potato in the soup pot. You get a well textured soup, but not creamy.


Add milk and heat.
Serve with shredded cheese on top.

Makes about 8 servings

Cream of Mushroom Soup

Tonight is soup night. When the weather turns chilly and the leaves start drifting down quietly from the trees...when the wind blows a little colder, the sun sets a little earlier, the light is more golden, the acrid smell of burning wood melds with the sweet smell of damp leaves... it's fall. And fall means Thursday soup nights, my son's favorites.

This was actually, despite my deep love of mushrooms, my first attempt at cream of mushroom soup. No resource altered or guidance used. This is 100% me.

Ok, I know, the picture is terrible. My camera's battery decided to die right as I was being a genius, and ye old smart phone has only 8 megapixels. My bad. 

This is in no way, shape, or form fat free. It is lower in fat that the crap in the can and much yummier. 

Start with a bunch of different kinds of mushrooms. I used something like close to 2 pounds. 

See, mushroom-a-holic. 

I used Oyster, button, crimini and shittake. These were what was available at the local produce market. It's not mushroom season till March, so I make do.

You will also need:

1/2 and 1/2

Chicken stock or Better than Bouillon

Onion

Celery

Carrot

Garlic

Bay Leaf

Rosemary

Salt and Pepper

Butter

White wine

Milk 

Cut the onions into tiny bits, shred the carrots, chop the celery, rough chop the garlic, rough chop the mushrooms. 

Melt 2 Tbs of butter into the bottom of your stock pot (10 qt) on medium-high heat. Saute onion and garlic until onion is translucent. Add carrot and celery and cook for a few minutes. Add mushrooms mix gently so butter coats them. Add 1/2 c white wine, 4 cups of chicken stock, and 2 c milk. Add 1/2t rosemary and  2 bay leaves, Reduce heat to medium and watch carefully so the milk doesn't separate. Add 1 quart of 1/2 and 1/2. Heat through. Salt as needed (I used a lot). Soup should fill the stock pot about 3/4. 

Serve warm with bread and butter or a salad. 

And that's it. Super easy. Moderately healthy. Deliciously yummy. 

White Bean Sweet Potato Chili

As I sit here eating chili cheese tots with the leftover chili form last night, it dawned on me that maybe I should share.

It's the end of the month and that means the pantry and frig are looking a little...well let's just say I can actually see the shelves in the frig and pantry k?

It is rainy and cold. Good night for chili right?

Crap. I have only white beans. Ooooh. I have sweet potatoes too... hmmmm.

Well, that wouldn't be too bad. Let's make a chili that has both. Warm and yummy and hearty. Perfect for a cold night.

Doesn't that look yummy?

Don't lie, you know it does.

If you don't like sweet potatoes, you've never had them this way. They add just a tiny, infinitesimal hint of sweetness. Awesome if you like your chili spiceh, spiceh, spiceh.

Channeling my inner donkey. Sorry.

To start off with you need one whole onion. Chop it into bits.

Wait, scratch that. Spices. You need spices. 

I was out of powdered cumin and coriander but I had seeds which are a million times better anyway, jsut take and extra step.

Warm up a ginormous pot with a little olive oil in the bottom. 

Get out your handy dandy spice squisher. (Also known as a mortar and pestle.)

If you do not have a squisher, then a rolling pin works to a the meat pounder (tenderizer).

Pound or squish until seeds are cracked. Like this.

See. Happy seeds. They are gonna be even happier when you throw them in hot, smoldering oil where they will fry their tooshies off. And get all smelly and yummy.

While they are getting happy, chop the onion. Chop a bell pepper up too.

Toss the onion in the pot with the now orgasmically happy seeds.

When onions are translucent-ish, toss in pepper too.

While they are getting happy together, chop you sweet potatoes in chunks.

See? Chunks. Now you know the difference between chunks and bits. These are little chunks because my stove is retarded. It doesn't like ginormous pans of anything let alone thick liquid. 

Stupid stove.

*dreams of a gas viking*

...

...

...

Also de-thaw your beans if in freezer as mine were. If you are using a can, drain and rinse the beans. 

No, the bean juice is NOT extra flavoring. Yuck.

You might also want to get out the bouillon, or in my case, Better than Bouillon. 

Trust me, it's better. 

This is a vegetarian base, so we use the veggie kind. Feel free to use chicken if you don't have veggie people in your house. No beef. This is not a beefy kinda meal. Use the beef in red chili.

Oh? Where to find it? Well here, Costco carries it in multiple flavors and so do our local grocery stores (Winco and Fred Meyer). I am sure you can find it in your local grocer. If not, the specialty stores like Whole Foods, etc probably have it.

It's worth it, trust me. Have I led you astray yet?

See, my point exactly.

Prepare your broth according to the box/jar directions. 

Throw some more spices in the pot. Garlic. Check.

Chili powder. check

White Pepper. Check.

Salt. Check.

I use about 1Tbs of each except the salt. Only about 1-2 tsp to taste. I add the salt after the liquid so I know how much I need. 

Let the new spices get happy with everything else for a minute or 2.

Pour a small amount of liquid in and "deglaze" the pot to get all the goodness off the bottom.

Now toss in everything else. 

Stop playing basketball with the potatoes.

Poor Potatoes.

That's potato abuse.

Place them in the pot with the beans and liquid. If you want chicken, add that in now too. It needs to be pre-cooked though. (cut into strips or chunks and saute in olive oil on medium heat until cooked through. Make sure you salt and pepper it before you cook it.)

Turn heat to medium and simmer till everything gets all happy together. I usually give it 30 mins or so.

Go have an amaretto sour while your waiting. Pop in a movie. Play on Pinterest. Do some laundry. Whatever.

Tonight I watched the Smurfs with the kids in between stages of dinner. 

When the smell drags you to the kitchen and your mouth is watering as you float toward the smell like Sylvester the cat...

Throw in some corn if you like that. I love corn in chili. MMMMMMM

Chop some cilantro.

Get out the sour cream.

And the bowls.

Taste one more time for necessary saltiness.

And serve. 

I nuked some chicken nuggets and chopped them up and put on top. It was actually pretty good. Feel free to add chicken strips or chunks into the chili. I won't be offended.

Easy as pie (and pie isn't easy always). Ok easy as...a boxed dinner but with fresh ingredients.

Enjoy!

Broccoli Cheese Soup

Every Thursday, and I blame my mother for this, we have soup. Most weeks its canned because I'm lazy. Or because I work 3 jobs and go to school full time and have 2 kids. Nope that wouldn't be it.

Sometimes, I feel frisky and actually make soup.

Today, my son had to go through a bunch of lab tests to see why he is hurting all the time. His favorite is Aunt Katie's broccoli cheese soup.

So that's what he got!

This is actually my sister's recipe. I didn't alter it I don't think, but I honestly have never been in the kitchen while she makes it, just know the ingredients, basically and that it is magical.

Here's what you need to gather. Reminder. These are staples at my house (except the fancy cheese) Alter as needed to be what you have at home. Chicken stock surely will do if that's what you have. I won't be offended, promise

2 Tbs Better than Bouillon (we use vegy version)

4 c Water

1 Onion cut into bits

3 celery stalks, sliced (cuz its easier than bits)

Cheese (I use sharp cheddar, smoked gouda and a little velveeta)

Broccoli (duh!) chopped. I use fresh, but frozen works too. What? No quantities? Nope. Put in as much or as little as you like

3 big Carrots shredded. (we are going to puree them in a little bit, so just do it already)

Potatoes (optional) cut into chunks

2 c Milk or if you are feeling adventurous, cream or half n half.

First step, shred the damn carrots. I use my handy food processor (and you can grate the cheese too while your at it, except the velveeta. Doesn't work. Trust me.) You can use ye old cheese grater too. Watch your knuckles.

Saute (put a little oil in bottom of pan and throw in stuff) in ginormous pot, onion, celery. When they are a little brown and translucent (oooh big word!) add in carrots, bouillon and water. Let cook until carrots are squishy. Won't take long.

Get out your blender. Or the stick blender if'n you have one. If you don't, go spend 10 bucks and get one. They are amazing.

Blend what in the pot until everything is thoroughly murdered. Got it?

K.

Dump in 2c milk, broccoli and potatoes. DO NOT TOUCH THE CHEESE!

Stop eating it or you wont have enough left.

I said stop it.

OK. Onward.

Cook until broccoli is tender and taters are too. Turn off the heat. THIS IS IMPORTANT!

NOW add the cheese. Cook only long enough to melt. If the cheese gets too hot, it will separate. It will still taste good, just look funky. Kids don't like funky looking soup.

That's it your done!

Throw in a grilled cheese on texas toast if you desire or crackers work too. Or whatever random bread you have laying around.

Easy meal. 30 mins or so.