Harvest Feast
Have been rather exhausted in aftermath of a small dinner party I hosted on Monday. It was a good deal of fun, no small thanks to the copious quanities of good wine poured all around. (Enough that I managed to smash my first wine glass in 4 years. Ah, well. No one was injured, at least, but now I'll have to track down what kind of glass it was so I can replace it.) Otherwise it was quite a success, though as someone pointed out, I may have gone overboard with my use of orange food. For starters, there was butternut squash soup; for the main course, roast chicken (brown, but close enough), glazed turnips and carrots, and butternut squash risotto; and for dessert, pumpkin cake with sage ice cream. I was a bit mortified to see that I had transformed my dining room table into an epicurean version of Christo's Gates.
Still, I was very pleased by the way the soup turned out. Secret ingredient: pears! It's so simple and easy, I think I'll give it another try Friday, when I get more squash from the farmers' market.
Roasted Butternut Squash-Pear Soup
1 3-pound butternut squash
1 medium pear (I used D'Anjou)
oil (preferably a mild-flavored vegetable one, like canola)
1 large onion, diced
3 Tbsp. fresh sage, chopped
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 15-oz cans of chicken broth
salt to taste
1 Tbsp sugar (optional)
Halve the squash. Quarter and core the pear (there's no need to peel it). Coat cut sides with vegetable oil and place cut side down in roasting pan. Bake at 400 degrees for 50 minutes. Allow to cool.
In a large soup pot, heat the olive oil. Add diced onion, salt to taste. Cook, stirring occasionally, until transparent and just beginning to caramelize. Add sage, give a quick stir, and scrape the onion-sage mixture into a blender or food processor.
Scoop out the flesh of the squash into the blender or food processor. Add the pear and one can of broth. (Split into batches, if necessary.) Blend until smooth. Pour back into soup pot and add remaining can of broth. Add salt and sugar, if desired. Heat through and serve.
(Makes approximately 6 servings.)
Still, I was very pleased by the way the soup turned out. Secret ingredient: pears! It's so simple and easy, I think I'll give it another try Friday, when I get more squash from the farmers' market.
Roasted Butternut Squash-Pear Soup
1 3-pound butternut squash
1 medium pear (I used D'Anjou)
oil (preferably a mild-flavored vegetable one, like canola)
1 large onion, diced
3 Tbsp. fresh sage, chopped
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 15-oz cans of chicken broth
salt to taste
1 Tbsp sugar (optional)
Halve the squash. Quarter and core the pear (there's no need to peel it). Coat cut sides with vegetable oil and place cut side down in roasting pan. Bake at 400 degrees for 50 minutes. Allow to cool.
In a large soup pot, heat the olive oil. Add diced onion, salt to taste. Cook, stirring occasionally, until transparent and just beginning to caramelize. Add sage, give a quick stir, and scrape the onion-sage mixture into a blender or food processor.
Scoop out the flesh of the squash into the blender or food processor. Add the pear and one can of broth. (Split into batches, if necessary.) Blend until smooth. Pour back into soup pot and add remaining can of broth. Add salt and sugar, if desired. Heat through and serve.
(Makes approximately 6 servings.)