By my count, it’s been about 2.5 years since I’ve posted a recipe. Given I cook more than not, it’s hard to believe that much time has past. I guess since I have a standard set of recipes I rotate, and have managed to post most of my signature dishes, there hasn’t been any long and involved processes to talk about. At least it seems that way. In reality, I’ve had to step outside my box quite a few times in the last year due to receiving a large number of… new to us… vegetables with our CSA. If nothing else, the CSA has proved a great way to expose us to vegetables we wouldn’t normally buy ourselves.
Perhaps not surprisingly, this recipe was born of a combination of “What the heck are we gonna use this for?” and “What the heck are we gonna eat?” moments. I had a few key pieces on hand and did my best to come up with something worthy of a fall afternoon. The beauty of the meal is it took less than an hour to make and, although I’m not a nutritionist, very healthy. Heck, if you replace the chicken broth with vegetable and don’t bother with the duck pate (more on this later), you’ve got yourself a delicious vegan meal. You could use everything fresh (non-canned) if you wanted the purest home-cooked meal, but you’d obviously have to cook it longer.
Required:
- one butternut squash – peeled, de-seeded and diced
- one small onion – cut to preference (I like wedges)
- one head garlic
- one can chunky crushed tomato
- one large container chicken broth (I use low-sodium fat-free)
- evoo
- salt & pepper
- steamed rice
Optional:
- grated pecorino romano
- grated aged gouda (I prefer 5 year as it’s much sharper and harder)
- three or four radishes (large cooking variety, not those in salads)
- tablespoon duck liver pate
It’s worth noting all the optional ingredients made it in to the pot because, and only because, I had it on hand. Everything on that part of the list was added for the sake of making a heartier, more complex soup. You’ll probably have to go out of your way to find three of the four, so I’ve listed them in descending order of recommendation. Whether or not you include them is entirely up to you and your tastes.
Preparation:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. (I use my convection-capable microwave.)
- Spread just enough evoo to cover the bottom of a large Pyrex dish.
- Single layer the vegetables in the dish, keeping the garlic in unpeeled clusters to prevent burning.
- Liberally salt and pepper the vegetables.
- Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender (pic above).
- In separate pot, simmer canned tomatoes and chicken broth on moderate heat.
- After vegetables are cooked, remove the garlic and dump contents of Pyrex into the pot.
- Peel garlic cloves and put in soup.
- Simmer soup, covered, for 20-30 minutes. Add pate towards the end, if desired.
- Serve over steamed rice with cheese(s) grated on top.
I cook my rice with powdered chicken bouillon (a Vietnamese variety, actually) so no seasoning of the soup is necessary. I also included a clove or two of the garlic to flavor the rice, but this is definitely not a required step. Feel free to adjust to your tastes.
That’s it. Easy peasy, right? I think so. I don’t generally go for vegetable soups but this is a downright delicious bowl of goodness. Enjoy.