ModernGear Food: Butternut Squash and Roasted Red Pepper Soup

I know last week's recipe was Butternut Squash-based as well, but I consider this to be, culinarily-speaking, one of the best times of year in large part because of this wonderful, vitamin-packed vegetable...and really, ALL squashes. I don't discriminate. (Wiki says the butternut variety are a good source of fiber, vitamin C, manganese, magnesium, potassium, and vitamin A.)

This soup is incredibly easy to make, makes up a large batch with a large squash, and keeps well in the refrigerator.

BUTTERNUT SQUASH AND ROASTED RED PEPPER SOUP

INGREDIENTS

1 large butternut squash
2 medium red bell peppers
1 large onion
4 cloves garlic
1 tetra pack chicken broth, 32 fl oz./1QT
1 cup milk
1 tsp curry (to taste)
salt and pepper
cinnamon
milk

Um, oops. Duane likes to help bring me ingredients.

First step, remove all dog hair from work area.

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Poke holes into whole butternut squash, quite far through, about 6-8 around the whole thing.
2. Place entire squash, unpeeled and uncut, into a shallow pan, and into the hot oven.
3. Bake for 1 hour. While it is baking, dice onion and garlic, set aside.
4. Remove squash from oven, turn up oven temperature to broil.

5. When oven is ready to broil, place whole red peppers on top wire rack, with a pan underneath to catch the juices.
6. While peppers are broiling, slice the squash in half and spoon out seeds. Be careful as the squash will be very hot. Let squash cool, while you saute the onions and garlic to soften.

7. When squash cools enough to work with, cut squash into smaller chunks and remove the skin.
8. Blend three quarters of the squash in a blender, using splashes of chicken broth to keep a liquid consistency. Pour this into a soup pot. Add the remaining chicken broth.

No-one said this wasn't going to be messy...

9. Place the rest of the squash slices as well as the onion and garlic into the liquid in the pot, keep on medium-high heat until liquid begins a boil.
10. By now the peppers should be ready to take out of the oven...basically, they're ready when the pepper is sweating or leaking liquid, and the skin is turning black. Remove them carefully, with tongs, placing them into a bowl.
11. Cover immediately with plastic wrap. Return to your soup.
12. With a potato masher, mash the chunks of squash that are in with the liquid. (If you prefer a very smooth soup, blend all of the squash.)
13. After about five minutes, take off the plastic wrap from the bowl of peppers. Carefully (they will be hot) remove the stems and skin - this will be easy as the peppers will be very soft. Remove the seeds. Place peeled and seeded roasted peppers into the blender.
14. Blend til smooth, and add red pepper paste to soup.
15. Stir in milk. Add salt, pepper, curry and cinnamon to taste. Reheat before serving.

Bon Appétit!

PS I like to make homemade croutons for homemade soups. Simply take a baguette or other bread, and cut into cubes. Place into a container, and drizzle cubes with olive oil. Place top on container and shake the cubes to coat with oil. Pan fry til lightly browned. Enjoy!