winter squash bisque
I have been a bit distant lately. I know; I’m sorry. I entered a fiction contest on Saturday (Yeah, yeah, la-dee-dah. I’m sure I won’t win.), which meant the weeks leading up to Saturday were very busy. It was hard to concentrate on cookies and chocolate when my head was buried in tall ships and Pre-Revolutionary America.
Anyway, I did come up with a few recipes, and I figured I’d post them now, while you’re all dreaming up your Thanksgiving menus. This is the winter squash soup I promised you. By the way, it freezes beautifully, so if you want to serve it for Thanksgiving, make it now, let it cool completely, and freeze it in a big container. You can heat it up when the turkey comes out of the oven!
Coming soon: pumpkin crème brûlée, for those of you who want something a little different for pumpkin pie.
winter squash bisque
2 tablespoons butter
1 large shallot, finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
pinch of cayenne pepper
2 14 ounce (400g) cans winter squash puree (butternut squash, or even pumpkin)
1/2 cup (175g) apple cider or grape juice
1/2 a large ripe pear, peeled and chopped into 1 inch pieces
2 cups (500g) homemade chicken stock
1 large sprig of fresh sage
salt to taste
2-4 tablespoons heavy cream
1. Over low heat, melt butter in the bottom of a large pot. Sauté shallot in butter until tender, about 8-10 minutes. Stir in spices and cook for a minute more.
2. Stir in squash, pear pieces, juice, and chicken stock. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and toss in sage. Simmer for 10 minutes, or until the pear pieces are tender.
3. Remove sprig of sage. Add salt (I used about 1/2 teaspoon, but the amount will vary, depending on the stock used.). Stir in cream. Serve.
November 5th, 2008 at 3:06 pm
Sounds fantastic. I love butternut squash soup, and I’m sure this puts reqular soup to shame. BTW, you had me at butter and cream.
As for the creme brulee, I demand that you not put such a dangerous recipe on your site until it has been throughly tested. By me. I’ll bring a spoon Thursday.
Don’t sell your writing short!
November 5th, 2008 at 3:52 pm
Oooh! I’ve never tried to make this. I saw Martha Stewart make it once, but you had to cook the butternut squash and that was way too complicated for me! ha. I like the canned idea better!!!
Thanks Jaime!!!
November 5th, 2008 at 4:42 pm
That is gorgeous.
Um….do you need someone to come by and help with that pumpkin brulee?
Just wondering…
Love ya!
November 6th, 2008 at 12:36 pm
Yummy! Love anything with pumpkin in it! Thanks for sharing and good luck with your contest!
November 6th, 2008 at 5:11 pm
Butternut Squash Soup is a favorite in our house, and I am always looking for new recipe variations to try! This looks great.
Thanks so much for the kind words in your previous post about Citrus!
November 7th, 2008 at 7:09 am
This looks yummy! Good luck with your fiction contest. Remember think POSITIVE!
November 8th, 2008 at 2:40 pm
Oh, that is beautiful! Question: If you used fresh winter squash, how much would you use?
November 8th, 2008 at 5:17 pm
If I were to use fresh squash, such as pumpkin, acorn, or butternut, I would cut them, place them on a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet, and roast them at a high temperature (375 degrees farenheit), until tender. Depending on the size of the squash, this could be anywhere between 40-60 minutes. Keep an eye on them. After roasting, I would remove any skins and puree them in a food processor or a really good blender until it is smooth. After I make the puree, I would use about 4 cups.