December 29, 2004
Bourbon and Butternut Squash Soup
At the Christmas party I went to this year, Maureen made this amazing Butternut Squash soup that I fell in love with. Thankfully, she gave Sam the recipe as promised, so I decided to try it yesterday with great success.
Ingredients:
2 tbsp butter
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
1 large butternut squash (~3 lbs), peeled, seeded and cut into 1-inch chunks
1 1/2 quarts chicken stock, preferably homemade or low-sodium
1/4 cup good bourbon
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper
1/2 tsp curry powder
lemon juice
1/4 cup heavy cream, or to taste
Directions:
1. Melt butter in heavy soup pot. Add onion and stir to coat. Cover pan and sweat until soft, about 10 minutes. Add squash, stock, bourbon and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and cook uncovered until squash is very soft, 30 to 40 minutes.
2. Strain the mixture through a colander set over a clean pot, reserving liquid. Discard bay leaf. Transfer squash and onions to blender and process until smooth. Return to pot and add reserved broth. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until soup thickens to consistency of light cream, 10 to 15 minutes. Season with curry powder and salt and pepper to taste. Stir in lemon juice to taste. Add heavy cream just before serving and reseason if necessary. Serve hot.
Serves 8 as a first course.
Notes: I made a lot of adaptions to the recipe to fit what I had around the house. I left out the bay leaf because I would have had to buy a whole jar which would then sit on Sam's spice rack for the rest of time. Sam had a small bottle of irish whiskey around, so we used that instead of bourbon. The curry powder was Maureen's addition to the recipe. Also, Maureen added the heavy cream to each bowl, as she served it, so we did the same.
Courtesy of Maureen Cooper
Posted by dahl at December 29, 2004 09:59 AM