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Autumn is here! For me, this is a “yippee!” moment, for I love this time of year. And what better way to celebrate the cooling temps and the showers of jewel-toned foliage on my lawn than with a piping hot bowl of soup? Well, make that a warm bowl of soup, as hot liquids are not on the menu today. The emergency oral surgery on Monday afternoon has left me in pain (I cannot take the coveted pain killers that most are able to take after such a procedure) and unable to have solid foods, and I’m not a pudding and applesauce kind of girl. I need something with some substance to it, real food. Pureed real food. And so it was that on the third day of my culinary foray into liquids, I decided that I could push through the pain long enough to make myself a nice pot of soup. And there sat the butternut squash, and the red pepper, and that sealed the deal. There are a multitude of recipes for such a soup on the internet, I’m sure. I never even looked to see how many, so I cannot impress you with some giant number. I am not much on recipes for such a loose and easy meal as soup. Some of this, a little of that, that’s how I roll. I do have a recipe from Epicurious that I collected some years ago on which this recipe is based, but I must tell you that this should be considered the “quick & dirty” version. The version you use when you are longing for real food and you’re in nearly too much pain to eat anything. But it is tasty and filling and simple to make. Oh, and it’s free of all the things we do not eat – gluten, dairy, egg, soy, nuts – naturally! But I will confess that the last time I made this, prior to going dairy-free, my bowl had a sizeable dollop of crème fraiche resting on top…I do miss that! I’ve replaced it with the Roasted Red Pepper Puree, which again, goes along with that dated Epicurious recipe. I typically use the red pepper for topping hummus, but this time, I used it for the soup, and it is oh, so good. Enjoy!

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

1 butternut squash, approximately 2 lbs., roasted*
½ c. chopped red onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 T. olive oil, divided
2 c. vegetable broth
1 t. dried thyme
½ t. coarse sea salt
1/8 t. freshly ground black pepper
Dash of ground cayenne pepper, optional
 
In a large soup pot, cook onion over medium heat in ½ T. of the olive oil until soft. Add garlic cloves and cook for 1 minute more. Remove from the heat, reserving pot for reheating the soup later.
 
In the bowl of your food processor, puree the cooled squash along with the onion and garlic and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Return mixture to soup pot and add 2 cups of vegetable broth, thyme, salt, and peppers.  

*To roast squash: wash and dry the squash, then cut it in half length-wise. Scoop out seeds, and rub inside of squash halves with ½ T. olive oil. Place flesh side down in a baking pan large enough for both squash halves to lie flat. Pour ¼ c. water in the pan around the squash and roast at 375 for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Remove from the oven and allow squash to remain in the pan until cool enough to handle. When you are able to pick up the squash, scoop out the flesh, leaving the peel behind. You will be able to scrape all the way to the peel with a spoon. If you prefer, you could alternatively use a knife to cut away the peel and cube the intact flesh. For the soup, scooping is fine, as it will be pureed.

Roasted Red Pepper Puree

1 medium red pepper, roasted* with skin removed
½ T. olive oil
1 clove garlic, “micro-roasted”**
Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste (I use about ¼ t. salt and 1/8 t. pepper)
 
Place all ingredients into bowl of food processor and blend until smooth. This keeps for a couple of days in the refrigerator, and is an excellent topping for the butternut squash (or other savory) soup, as well as your favorite hummus.

*To roast red pepper – there are many methods, this is mine:Heat your gas grill to high and place peppers on the grill, turning and allowing to char all over, which takes several minutes on each side. With tongs, remove peppers to a paper bag and turn down the top, allowing the peppers to remain sealed in the bag until cool enough to handle, approximately 20 minutes. This will also allow the pepper to continue to cook inside. When the peppers are cool enough to be handled, pull out the stem to allow any steam inside to release, and run under cool water while rubbing off the charred skin. Drain peppers before using or storing. 

 **To “micro-roast” garlic: Place individual garlic cloves, outer peel intact, on a microwave safe plate and microwave on high power for 20-25 seconds. Remove and carefully squeeze garlic from its peel. The cloves will release easily from the outer peel and will be soft enough to mash with a fork, and will have the milder flavor of roasted garlic instead of the sharp bite of raw garlic. Of course, roasted is best, but this is a great method when you’re in a pinch!
 


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