AwesomeBites

Tag: Squash

  • Roasted Tomato Fennel Soup

    Roasted Tomato Fennel Soup

    Roasted Tomato Fennel Soup

    I woke up this morning wanting to make soup for my office luncheon meeting. Up at 5:00 AM, roasting vegetables. Husband looking at me oddly, and finely asking, “What are you making?”. As the vegetables roasted I grabbed a cup of coffee and sat down with Dennis for a few minutes of morning chit chat. I love the mornings, lighting the fireplace, having coffee, talking about the day ahead of us.

    27 years married, work in a business together, we have much to discuss.
    We discussed issues quickly and made decisions and moved from topic to topic. This is our time to discuss our calendars, potential conflicts, kids, vacation ideas, work strategy.

    I learned a long time ago to keep our discussions for the morning. Discussing issues at night when we are both tired, just led to a restless, sleepless night for both of us. Everything is shelved when I come home until the morning. It makes for a harmonic evening.

    My tomato plants are nice this year. Already have quite a few tomatoes, so soup has been on my mind. My fennel is also ready to pick. And lucky me, someone gave me some fresh squash. Happy girl I am!

    1 pan of quartered fresh tomatoes, 6-8
    2 yellow onions sliced
    2 cups squash, sliced
    2 bulbs fennel, sliced
    1/4 cup olive oil
    Drizzle olive oil over vegetables on separate sheet pans – one layer 400 degrees for 40 minutes

    8 cups chicken broth
    3 cans diced chopped tomatoes
    1/2 tsp red chili flakes
    1 tsp tarragon
    juice from 2 lemons
    Bring broth to a boil and add the vegetables after roasting. Simmer for 20-30 minutes allowing the soup to reduce. Using a stick hand blender, puree the vegetable soup.
    Serves a crowd 15-20 friends.
    Pour soup into crockpot to keep warm and take to your office and serve them lunch.
    Serve with grated parmesan and croutons.
    Excellent soup. You’ll love it!

    Order a cheese pizza and serve with the soup. You office mates are goin’ love you.
    Want more? Serve with Chicken Ceasar Salad.
    Awesome!

  • Butternut Squash Ravioli with Brown Butter Sage

    Butternut Squash Ravioli with Brown Butter Sage

    Recipe (Modified from a recipe in Gourmet, 1997)

    Filling:
    2 c. roasted butternut squash
    1 medium onion, chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)
    1 T. fresh chopped
    1 tablespoon unsalted butter
    1 garlic clove, minced
    3 ounces aged goat cheese, grated or you can use parmesan

    Sauce:
    1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter
    1/3 cup hazelnuts,toasted lightly and skinned and chopped coarse
    1 T. chopped fresh sage

    Make filling:
    Put squash halves, flesh sides down, an baking sheet and roast in middle of oven 30 minutes, or until flesh is very tender. When squash is cool enough to handle, scoop out flesh into a bowl and discard skin. Mash squash with a fork until smooth.

    While squash is roasting, in a skillet cook onion and sage in butter with salt and pepper to taste over moderate heat, stirring, 5 minutes, or until onion is golden brown. Stir in garlic and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Cool onion mixture slightly and add to squash. Add goat cheese and stir to combine well.

    Sauce:
    In skillet cook butter with hazelnuts over moderate heat until butter begins to brown, about 3 minutes, and immediately remove from heat (nuts will continue to cook). Season hazelnut butter with salt and pepper and keep warm, covered.

    Cook ravioli in 3 batches in gently boiling either 6 minutes, or until they rise to surface and are tender (do not let water boil vigorously once ravioli have been added). Carefully transfer ravioli as cooked with a slotted spoon to a large shallow baking pan and add enough cooking water to reach 1/2 inch up side of pan. Keep ravioli warm, covered.
    Transfer ravioli with a slotted spoon ) letting excess cooking liquid drip off) to 6 plates and top with hazelnut brown-butter sauce.

    Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Butternut-Squash-Sage-and-Goat-Cheese-Ravioli-with-Hazelnut-Brown-Butter-Sauce-14287#ixzz1020wDfGW

    Pasta (Tyler Florence):
    2 c. flour
    1 t. salt
    3 eggs
    2 T. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

    To make the pasta dough: In an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook*, combine the flour and salt. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and continue to mix. Drizzle in 1 tablespoons of the olive oil and continue to incorporate all the flour until it forms a ball. Sprinkle some flour on work surface, knead and fold the dough until elastic and smooth, this should take about 10 minutes. Brush the surface with the remaining olive oil and wrap the dough in plastic wrap; let rest for about 30 minutes to allow the gluten to relax

  • Butternut Squash Soup

    Butternut Squash Soup

    Soup,  made ahead, can be fast food.  Just put what want to save for later into jars, and either refrigerate or freeze.  Don’t be afraid to make a lot.  Soup gets better with age.  A good side dish to this soup is fried Keilbasa polish sausage. 

    Bowl of Butternut Squash Soup without cream.

    6 cups Vegetable or Chicken Broth

    1 butternut squash cubed – about 6 cups

    1 Ham bone or 1 Turkey Carcas

    2 Tomatoes sliced

    1/2 cup carrots

    1/4 tsp of Cayenne Pepper or Red Pepper Flakes (Go easy. A little goes a long way.)

    Bring to a boil, bring up to pressure and cook at pressure for 30-40 minutes

    Blend with a stick blender. 

    After blending. If you want even smoother, strain it.
    Saving some Butternut Squash Soup for later. Refrigerate or Freeze.

                                                                                                    

    Soup with Cream and Nutmeg garnishes.