Easy Butternut Squash Soup1
By: My Cooking Hut
Published: Thursday, February 25, 2010 - 11:41am

Ingredients




1 Butternut squash (halved and deseeded)
2 tablespoons Olive oil
2 Potatoes
1 Onions
1 liter Vegetable stock
Salt and pepper, to taste

Preparation

1 Chop butternut squash, onion and potatoes into cubes. 2 Warm a large pot and add in olive oil. Add in onions and cook till soft. 3 Then, add in potatoes and squash. Cook for a minute or so. 4 Add in vegetable stock and allow to simmer for about  30 minutes or until potatoes and squash are soft. 5 Using a blender or food processor, blend the soup until smooth. If too thick, add a bit of water. 6 Season with salt and pepper.

About


I was a late starter with butternut squash and didn’t know much about it until few years ago. I saw them often at the supermarkets but had never picked one up and put in my shopping basket. I stayed curious for quite some time on its taste and texture until I finally tasted it.
Butternut squash has yellow skin and orange fleshy pulp, which tastes similar to pumpkin. Butternut squash is one of the most popular and widely available forms of winter squash. The skin is pretty hard to peel. So, it’s either you have a very good peeler or a sharp knife. I usually like to use my knife to slowly slice off the skin.
Little do I know that butternut squash belongs to the same family as pumpkin, cucumber and courgette, that is know as Cucurbita Moschata. The split between winter and summer squash is primarily based on usage, rather than botanical classification. Winter squash, such as the butternut, are squash that are harvested when mature, with hard skins. Summer squash (including cucumbers and courgettes) are eaten whilst immature and usually have an edible skin and less strongly flavoured flesh.
Butternut squash not only tastes good, it is also a well-balanced food source that is rich in complex carbohydrates and low in saturated fat and sodium. Also, it contains a lot of vitamins A and C and a good source of beta-carotene, magnesium, manganese, calcium and potassium.
I once made roast butternut squash and thought it is another great appetising side dish for Sunday roast. Later on, I tried to make butternut squash into soup, which I absolutely love. It naturally tastes so sweet like I have never tasted a soup like this before. Well, I don’t usually made soup like this (I mean using squash) and now, I have discovered another kind of soup that I can survive on, which is wonderful. This soup is great, again, for wintery weather like what we have now. I wonder when I can have my first taste of spring?