Butternut Squash Soup

A few weeks ago I enrolled in a Whole Foods Nutrition and Culinary Certificate Program, kind of on a whim. Because although I cook most of my meals at home, I still feel like an amateur. My chicken sometimes (ok frequently) comes out dry and when it comes to creating my own recipes, I stick to what I know - bowls, salads, smoothies, overnight oats, pasta, or a standard variation of meat + veggie + side.

But I’m a total food blogger wannabe who dreams of casually whipping up my own garlicky delicious cauliflower pizza dough or creating my own recipe for gluten-free banana bread (with chocolate chips, obvi).

So, alas, I enrolled in a cooking class.

I’ll admit the first class was pretty basic and left me wondering if I’d be doomed to eating dry chicken the rest of my life. We reviewed basic knife skills and learned which pots and pans are best and safest to cook with (stainless steel, cast iron, or carbon steel are the best options if you were curious). We made a basic slaw with apples, carrots, and celery…it was good, but wasn’t blog-worthy (just sayin’).

Last week, though, we learned to make our own stock in a pressure cooker (so much easier than I thought and a great way to eliminate food waste!) and incorporated that into this creamy, delicious butternut squash soup.

To make this recipe vegetarian or vegan, simply use vegetable stock instead of chicken stock. To keep it paleo-friendly, omit the chickpea garnish.

Makes: 4-6 servings

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 onion, medium diced

• 2 celery ribs, medium diced

• 2 carrots, medium diced

• 2 garlic cloves, whole

• 1 medium butternut squash, seeds scooped, medium diced (fun fact - you don’t have to peel your butternut squash!)

• 2 thyme sprigs

• 2 bay leaves

• 1 tsp sea salt

• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika

• 1/4 tsp black pepper

• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar or cooking wine

• 4 cups vegetable or chicken stock*

• 1/2 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped

Instructions

1. In a large soup pot, heat the olive oil and sauté onions for 1 minute.

2. Add celery, carrots and garlic and sauté for another 2-3 minutes, combining well.

3. Next, add the butternut squash, herbs, salt, smoked paprika, and pepper. Mix well to combine all ingredients.

4. Add the balsamic vinegar or cooking wine and deglaze the pan. (PS if you don’t know what deglazing is, neither did I! Just add the vinegar or wine and gently scrape the sides of the pan.)

5. Next, add the vegetable stock and bring to a boil. Once it comes to a boil, turn down the heat to a simmer and cook for about 15 minutes or until the squash is tender and easily pierced with a fork.

6. Remove the thyme sprigs and bay leaves and puree all the ingredients in the pot using a hand blender (or transfer ingredients to a Vitamix or similar blender).

7. Add fresh parsley as a garnish.

*If you want to make your own stock, try this recipe from Serious Eats!

We also added crunchy chickpeas on top to add texture and a little extra protein. This step is totally optional, but if you want to try it, here is a recipe for Roasted Curry Chickpeas. You can ditch the curry powder if you want and opt for salt and pepper or try any other flavor your little heart desires! I personally loved the added crunch and flavor the roasted chickpeas brought to the soup :)

Stay tuned for more recipes from my class and hopefully ones that I dare try to create on my own!

Recipe courtesy of Fernanda Larson, MS, CN