In honor of New York City’s delightful mix of slosh, polar vortexes, and sideways snow, I’m sharing my favorite winter soup with you. Consider it a gift of hope that one day – after many, many hot baths and bowlfuls of soup – we will all be warm again.
This is one of my favorite soups of all time, which is saying a lot because I’m a pretty soupy lady. It’s hearty, healthy, and full of deep flavors that complement each other perfectly. It also doesn’t hurt that it’s pretty easy to make, given you have some kind of food processing or blending tool on hand.
Since I have a kitchen the size of most people’s closets, I don’t own a big girl food processor. Instead, I have a mini food chopper that usually does more harm than good. It’s kind of an asshole, to be honest.
But even though I only had that tiny pink piece of crap to work with, making this soup was still very simple and painless. I didn’t even throw the mini chopper across the room once. This could actually be a record.
If you’re making this soup to share with anyone but yourself, I wholeheartedly recommend a double batch… because you’re going to want an entire four servings dedicated to your mouth. Trust me. I made a batch last weekend, and I have such regret about not making a double batch that I’m going back in for round two tomorrow. Live with no regrets, people. Let’s get soupy.
- 3 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 butternut squash (2.5-3lbs), cut in half and seeded
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 3 slices canadian bacon, finely diced
- 3 c chicken stock
- ¼ c fresh sage leaves
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper
- 4 tsp heavy cream
- Place microwave-safe plastic wrap directly onto your microwave plate. Place the squash halves, cut side down, on the plastic wrap. Cook on high for 10-14 minutes, until squash is almost completely cooked through. Set aside to cool.
- Heat 1 Tbsp of olive oil in a saucepan or pot. Add onion and canadian bacon, cook until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Scoop cooked squash into the saucepan, add broth, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer, and cook covered for 10 minutes.
- Transfer to a food processor and puree mixture on medium speed until smooth (I use a mini food chopper and do it in batches, because my kitchen is the size of a closet). Return mixture to pot, stir in salt and pepper.
- Heat remaining oil in a pan, fry sage leaves over medium heat until crispy (frying them gives them an amazing flavor, trust me!).
- Divide soup between four bowls. Top with 1 tsp heavy cream and 3-4 crispy sage leaves. ENJOY!
Source: ringfingertanline.com (defunct blog)
