Earth Eats: Twittered Butternut Squash Soup

We had more snow and soup seemed to fit the order of the day. So I made a fast and delicious butternut squash soup with what was on hand, using a recipe twittered by Annie Corrigan of WFIU radio's Earth Eats: Real Food, Green Living. Click on these links to find podcasts: the show is short, sweet, savvy, and smart. Here is Annie with Chef Daniel Orr of FARMBloomington.

The twitter looked like this:

eartheats: Looks tasty! #Recipe: Butternut Squash Soup II http://bit.ly/9y1VWy #seasonal #soup /@eshelton 5:25 PM Feb 10th from HootSuite 

With a simple click, I was directed to the recipe at allrecipes.com, a commons for cooks, who offer themes and variations. There are photos of twelve versions of this soup; the two here are my favorites, looking the most like the one in my house (the first was posted by MrsCdnFrog; the second by kreativekuisine).

This is such a delicious basic recipe, but you can imagine many potential enhancements: a smidgen of milk, cream, créme fraîche, or yogurt, some curry or other seasonings. A vegan version could substitute olive oil for the butter, and a basic vegetable stock for the chicken stock. I used my own frozen stock, made the last time we roasted a chicken. (I always feel like we double the value of a roast chicken when we do that.)

Butternut Squash Soup II 

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 stalk celery, chopped
• 1 medium carrot, chopped
• 2 medium potatoes, cubed
• 1 medium butternut squash - peeled, seeded, and cubed
• 1 (32 fluid ounce) container chicken stock
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste  

1.  Melt the butter in a large pot, and cook the onion, celery, carrot, potatoes, and squash 5 minutes, or until lightly browned. Pour in enough of the chicken stock to cover vegetables. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover pot, and simmer 40 minutes, or until all vegetables are tender.
2. Transfer the soup to a blender, and blend until smooth. Return to pot, and mix in any remaining stock to attain desired consistency. Season with salt and pepper.

Nutritional Information

Amount Per Serving  Calories: 305 | Total Fat: 6.8g | Cholesterol: 21mg