My $150 Butternut Squash Soup

It's been one of those days that I love...Sunday, rainy, cool...ALMOST October. I can't wait for Fall if you can't tell. I woke up this morning and saw that it was supposed to start storming around noon. I wanted to make some soup for lunch. It was a Barefoot Contessa recipe that sounded delicious. So I dragged my roomie out to the grocery store because we both needed to go. I wanted to get home before the rain started.


I LOVE SOUP. I eat it probably four out of seven days when it's cold out. So when I saw the Barefoot Contessa episode with Butternut Squash soup I knew I had to try it. The pic above is of the veggies roasting.

Now let me explain why the title of this blog is "My $150 Butternut Squash Soup". First of all, the next time I make this I will be buying pre-peeled, cubed butternut squash instead of trying to peel and cube my own butternut squash. What a pain in the arse THAT was. I think it probably took me a good twenty minutes just to peel the squash. It's very oddly shaped in case you aren't familiar with it. Thank god I have awesome knives or it would've taken me forever to cube it. So after peeling it, I took the peelings and stuffed them down the garbage disposal, turned on the water and flipped the switch. BIG MISTAKE. My disposal is now clogged and I'm waiting on the plumber to get here. I tried EVERYTHING...plungers, Drano, resetting the disposal, using that little "key" thing, sticking my hand in the drain, trying to clear it...nothing worked. SIGH. SO...I had to call a plumber. I'm guessing that it's going to cost around $100-$150 and that's why this soup is called the $150 Butternut Squash Soup. Next time it will probably only cost me about $10.

Anyway, the soup was freaking delicious. I really could not stop eating it. But I had to because my roommate is making a yummy dinner tonight. So I didn't want to be too full for that. Here's a pic of the finished product.
It's very savory, very filling and kind of sweet. I kept adding salt trying to cut the sweetness until I got it to my liking. You'll just have to do the same. Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

3 to 4 pounds butternut squash, peeled and seeded

2 yellow onions

2 McIntosh apples, peeled and cored

2 tbsp olive oil

Salt and freshly ground pepper

2 to 4 cup chicken stock (I used veggie stock of course)

1/2 tsp good curry powder (I used WAY more curry powder. Just a preference)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

2. Cut the butternut squash, onions and apples into 1-inch cubes. Place them on a sheet pan and toss them with the olive oil, 1 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper. Divide the squash mixture between 2 sheet pans and spread in a single layer. Roast for 35 to 45 minutes, tossing occasionally, until very tender.

3. Meanwhile, heat the chicken stock to a simmer. When the vegetables are done, put them through a food mill with the medium blade. (Alternatively you can place the roasted vegetables in batches in a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Add some of the chicken stock and coarsely puree.) When all of the vegetables are processed, place them in a large pot and add enough chicken stock to make a thick soup. Add the curry powder, 1 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper. Taste for seasonings to be sure there's enough salt and pepper to bring out the curry flavor. Reheat and serve hot. YUM!

Pasta with Walnuts in Sage Butter Sauce (Vegan)

So last night I decided, on a total whim, that I wanted something with sage butter sauce. I saw something in a magazine with that in the title earlier that day and couldn't stop thinking about it. So I started googling "sage butter sauce recipes" and came up with a total keeper. I found it here It sounded delicious so I knew I just HAD to try it.

I actually used whole wheat angel hair pasta and Earth Balance Buttery Spread as opposed to the Fettuccine and stick butter. But I'm sure it tasted just the same.

Excuse the poor picture quality. My roomie, with the mad photography skills, was MIA when the pasta was ready for it's close-up.

This was a perfect Fall dish. It was earthy tasting and savory. Even though my roomie was MIA with her camera, I still made enough for her because I'm sweet like that. She loved it. I will definitely be making this again...especially on a brisk fall night.

My BFF and Her Awesome Jewelry

So I need to take a moment to talk about my BFF, Cassandra. We worked together for about seven years but didn't really start hanging out until about two years ago. Weird, I know. We didn't really work in the same department but we knew who each other was and always said hello in passing. But it wasn't until we both got promotions in the same department and another office that made us start talking.

That first day we both showed up in the same lobby at the same time and didn't know anyone except each other. So of course, we bonded. And the rest, as they say, is history. Now we're roommates!

Anyway, she has a great blog and an awesome Etsy shop where she sells really GROOVY jewelry that she makes all by her little self. :) She makes some really cool stuff. And everything she ships out goes in these cute little packages...so pretty that you don't want to throw them away. Maybe, one day when I win the lottery, I will hire her to be my personal jewelry maker!

Want to know the benefits of living with a jewelry maker? She gives me stuff for free every now and then! WHOO HOO!