Roasted Squash Soup

Roasted Squash Soup Friday March 5, 2010




I found this on sneakychef.com

There are 2 parts to this - one you need to make the puree ahead of time. This looks really good and very healthy!!



I did alter this because there was no protein called for - so I'm not SURE how Greek Yogurt would taste but it's kind of sour and I think it'd be wonderful in this!!





Cutting a fresh squash can be daunting if you don't have a lot of upper body strength. If you bake it as you would a whole potato, it's easy to slice open after it's cooked. This fat-free creamy soup is a great first course to start holiday dinner. This recipe evolved over time as I started adding apples and cinnamon with a hint of sweetener and tang. It can be as homey or elegant as you wish. A handheld stick blender to puree all the ingredients completes making this really simple to create.



Makes 6 to 8 servings

- 1 large butternut squash

- 1 red onion, quartered

- 4 cups vegetable broth

- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

- 1 apple, peeled and quartered

- 1 cup Orange Puree

- 1/2 teaspoon salt

- 8 oz of plain greek yogurt

- Optional garnish: one-quarter cup toasted, shelled pumpkin seeds



Preheat oven to 375.



Rinse whole squash, prick with fork (as you would a baked potato), place on a baking sheet with the onion and bake for 45 minutes.



Remove squash and onion from oven. Set the onion aside while you cut open the squash and scoop the flesh from the skin. Place the onion, squash flesh, broth, cinnamon, salt, apple, and Orange Puree in a large soup pot. Bring to a simmer and cook for 15 to 20 minutes. Use an immersion blender to puree the soup to a smooth consistency. Alternately, you can puree the soup in batches using a blender.



Stir in the yogurt and serve. Top with toasted pumpkin seeds, if using.







ORANGE PUREE



This makes about 2 cups of puree. Double the recipe if you want to store another cup of puree. Store in refrigerator up to 3 days, or freeze one-quarter cup portions in sealed baggies or small plastic containers.





- 1 medium sweet potato or yam, peeled and rough chopped;

- 3 medium to large carrots, peeled and sliced into thick chunks;

- 2-3 tablespoons water



In a medium pot, cover carrots and potatoes with cold water and boil for about 20 minutes until yams, and especially the carrots, are very tender. If the carrots aren't thoroughly cooked, they'll leave telltale little nuggets of vegetables, which will reveal their presence (a gigantic NO-NO for the sneaky chef).



Drain the potatoes and carrots and put them in the bowl of food processor with two tablespoons of water. Puree on high until smooth; no pieces of carrots or potatoes should remain. Stop occasionally to push the contents from the top to the bottom. If necessary, use the third tablespoon of water to make a smooth puree, but the less water the better.



Carb: sweet potatoes, apple, evaporated skim milk (I haven't seen the nutrition info on this so just watch it - it's optional on this anyway)

Protein: Greek yogurt

Fat: These are optional on this, but the roasted pumpkin seeds are the Fat

Veggie: onion, carrots, veggie broth (should be ok)