smitten with squash

don’t you just love squash season?

most weekends, margo makes soup for our staff.

we are fortunate to have a fabulous staff, and a fabulous crop of squash.

commercial ovens to roast large quantities of them in helps too. 

the squash, not the staff!

 i am still tickled with my garage sale soup tureen!  

roasted squash soup

it's a loose recipe.. we are all ‘dumpers’ in our family.. we don’t really measure. don’t worry if your measurements aren’t exact.. 

it will be delicious and you can adjust to your taste. 

you will need..

4 ish cups roasted squash.. hubbard is the strongest flavour, then butternut, then acorn

1 medium onion diced 

1 or 2 cloves of garlic sliced 

1 tablespoon of oil or butter or a combination of the two

1or 2 apples peeled, cored and diced..   our mustus are perfect for this

1 can of coconut milk 

a generous tablespoon of curry paste.. green paste is quite hot, and red is much milder

4 cups of vegetable or chicken broth 

a splash of our cider if you are fortunate enough have some

cilantro, microgreens, pumpkin seeds, or fried sage leaves to garnish

to make..

it has always scared me to struggle with a big sharp knife and big hard squash, so we roast squash whole.. so easy.

preheat your oven to 350°.

wash any dirt off your squash.

place in a parchment lined roasting pan or cookie sheet.

roast for 45 minutes to and hour, depending on the size of your squash. test with a knife for doneness. 

while your squash is roasting, 

sauté the onions and garlic in oil or butter in a large soup pot.

add the sliced apples and curry paste and cook for a couple of minutes, stirring constantly. add the broth and simmer 'til the apple are soft. set aside. 

once your squash is roasted, cut it in half, scoop out the seeds and measure out 4 cups.

you can freeze the extra or use in another recipe.. have you tried squash gnudi?  

add the squash and apple cider to your soup pot and heat gently.

purée this in a blender or food processor or with a hand held immersion blender. swirl in the coconut milk. season to taste.

ladle into bowls and garnish.

enjoy.

if you are garnishing with sage leaves.. 

in a heavy pan, heat a tablespoon of butter and fry the individual sage leaves, turning over once. they will be brown and crispy. and delicious.

set these aside on a plate.

some optional ingredients you may love to add to the soup pot..

shallots, minced ginger and lemon grass.

squash to love..

hubbard.. vibrant rich, sweet and dense 

 butternut.. rich, smooth and creamy

acorn.. mild and buttery

you will be smitten with the squash we have in our barn market.

‘i can smell autumn dancing in the breeze. 

the sweet chill of pumpkin and crisp sunburnt leaves.’

anne drake

see you soon to celebrate autumn, 

warmly,

laura

carl laidlaw orchards