wordinista: (Default)
wordinista ([personal profile] wordinista) wrote2009-02-02 12:47 pm

Because Som asked so nicely~

Butternut Squash Soup
From Williams-Sonoma's "Food Made Fast" Collection: Slow Cooker (Yes, I... see the problem with the title too.)

4 TB unsalted butter
1 Yellow onion, chopped (I like Vidalia)
2-inch (5 cm) piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
2 Butternut Squash (about 4 lb [2 kg] total weight), peeled and cut into chunks
1 TB brown sugar
Salt and ground white pepper (I used a 5 peppercorn blend, and did not burst into flames of blasphemy)
4 cups (32 fl. oz/ 1 L) vegetable broth
1/2 cup (4 oz/ 125 g) sour cream
Fresh chives or flat leaf parsley

Saute the vegetables
In a frying pan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the onion and saute until softened -- about 5 minutes. Add the ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg and saute until fragrant,about 1 minute longer.

Cook the soup
Put the squash chunks in the slow cooker and sprinkle with the brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon white pepper. Pour the contents of the frying pan over the squash and add the broth. Cover and cook on the high-heat setting for 3 hours, or the low-heat setting for 6 hours.

Finish the soup
Using a blender or food processor (I got to break out my handy-dandy cordless hand blender for this!), working in batches, process the squash mixture to a smooth puree. Return the soup to the slow-cooker to keep warm until serving. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle into bowls, garnish with a dollop of the sou cream and the chives, and serve.

(I'll type up the ratatouille recipe a little later...)

[identity profile] jazzy-fay.livejournal.com 2009-02-02 06:20 pm (UTC)(link)
Dear God, woman! For this, I am in love with you. A lot.

[identity profile] w0rdinista.livejournal.com 2009-02-02 06:40 pm (UTC)(link)
IT IS SO VERY DELICIOUS. Honestly, the Williams-Sonoma cookbooks are pretty much made of awesome IMO. I haven't come across a stinker yet, in the slow-cooker book, at least. (And it's the only one of the collection that I have atm.)

I had leftovers for lunch for, like, three days in a row. It was so good, and really filling.

...

And now I want some. *sigh*

[identity profile] dqbunny.livejournal.com 2009-02-02 06:48 pm (UTC)(link)
Oh, YUM.

*stomach growls*

Hai, hai ... *goes to satisfy it*

[identity profile] everstar3.livejournal.com 2009-02-02 09:53 pm (UTC)(link)
What did adverbs ever do to Williams Sonoma?! *sob*

[identity profile] w0rdinista.livejournal.com 2009-02-03 04:03 am (UTC)(link)
Well, I get the concept. The line of books are Williams Sonoma: Food Made Fast, and there's a dessert book, a fish book, a meat book, etc. And I can also appreciate that the book is organized into recipes that are either fifteen or thirty minutes "hands-on time." So you sort of have to get into the book to see that the title actually does make sense?

It's still very funny to me, though. XD

[identity profile] everstar3.livejournal.com 2009-02-03 04:16 am (UTC)(link)
Face it, Williams-Sonoma is telling us how to make whore food.

[identity profile] everstar3.livejournal.com 2009-02-03 04:48 am (UTC)(link)
Well, sure. They're not McDonalds, for heaven's sake.

[identity profile] w0rdinista.livejournal.com 2009-02-03 04:03 am (UTC)(link)
...am not.