Soup or sandwich?

I'll have both.


(Stock photo...mine wasn't nearly as purty.)

Squash Soup must be trendy...every time I turn on a Food Network program, somebody is fixing squash soup.

Gawd help me, but it sure looked good...trendy or not. So I went a'huntin for a good, simple recipe, and Alton Brown had one.

That was my "project" for yesterday. I'll give you his recipe...then tell ya what I did differently.

6 C (about 2 large) Butternut squash, seeded, peeled and cut into 2 inch chunks
Melted butter for brushing
1 T kosher salt
1 t white pepper
3 C chicken or vegetable stock
4 T honey
1 t minced ginger
4 oz. heavy cream
1/4 t nutmeg

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Brush the flesh of the squash with a little butter and season with salt and pepper. Lay the squash on a sheet pan and roast for about 30-35 minutes or until flesh is soft.
When it's all nice and tender, put it in a pot and add the stock, honey and ginger. Bring to a simmer and puree using a stick blender. Stir in the heavy cream and return to a slow simmer. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg.
*******************

First off, good luck finding 2 "large" butternut squash. I used 3 small ones, cut 'em in half, scooped out the seeds, spritzed 'em with a little white truffle oil and sprinkled with salt and pepper...the black kind. Then I roasted 'em at 400 until tender. When they cooled, I scooped all the flesh out, threw it in a pot and added chicken stock, salt, pepper, probably 3 T honey, probably a teaspoon and a half...maybe two...of ground ginger and half a nutmeg nut, grated.

Then I pureed it all together with my handy-dandy little stick blender, turned the heat to simmer and let 'er rip for an hour or so. When it was time to serve, I stirred in a half cup...maybe 3/4, even...of fat-free Half & Half.

YUM!

It's a sweet/savory soup. I'm glad I didn't use the whole 4 T honey it called for. I think it would have been too sweet.

I served it with some open-faced sammies made with a slice of toasted french bread, a slice of deli roast beef and some nice gouda cheese all melty over the top.

It was an awesome supper for a cold, dreary winter evening.

Oh...and today is my 2-week mark of being a non-smoker! Two weeks! I can hardly believe it.