Fall is definitely in the air and now’s a great time to try out some new recipes, like this Kabocha Squash Soup.
Five to ten years ago, you would not have caught me dead eating squash soup. Let’s just say my food pallet has grown tremendously over the years. I didn’t eat any vegetables basically at all. My diet mostly consisted of breadsticks with cheese or some type of cheesy bread. No joke. Now I don’t eat ANY cheese and I eat tons of vegetables. It’s funny how we do change and grow.
I decided to try this soup out because my daughter was diagnosed with a form of Crohn’s disease and we needed to find something that was easy for her to digest and something nutritious. Little did I know that we would all wind up loving it. In fact, this is what I wound up bringing to Easter potluck and it ran out quickly. It almost has a creamy texture to it, but it does not have any dairy in the recipe. This squash soup has a little punch to it. I always garnish it with cilantro, herbs de provence, and finish it off with a squirt of lime juice.
What is Kabocha
Before we get into the recipe, some of you may be asking (like I did), what is kabocha? Kabocha is a winter squash, but it is known as the Japanese pumpkin. It’s sweet in taste; it actually tastes similar to a sweet potato and has a creamy like texture after it’s cooked. It’s high in beta-carotene and the rind is edible, but I cannot imagine eating it. Click here if you’re interested in more information on kabocha.
Ingredients
- 2-3 kabocha squash, seeded (I used way more than the original recipe)
- 1-2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (squash)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (onions and celery)
- 2 cups chopped or sliced onions
- 2 ribs of celery, sliced
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 1/2-inch piece of fresh ginger root, peeled and grated or use ground ginger
- 1 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
- 4 cups of chicken stock
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- Garnish with lime juice, chopped fresh cilantro, and herbs de provence
Directions
Preheat oven to 400°F. Cut the squash in half. It’s a little difficult to cut. I push my knife tip through the middle and then cut from there.
Scoop out the seeds and insides (roast the seeds if you wish). Place the squash pieces on foil or just use a cooking spray or olive oil on a pan (I prefer this method because it doesn’t add any aluminum) . Rub olive oil over all sides, and sprinkle with salt.
Put the squash pieces skin side up on the pan. Roast for 45 minutes to an hour, until completely cooked through, soft, and caramelized at the edges. Remove from oven and let sit until cooled.
Heat olive oil on medium high heat in a dutch oven. Add onions and celery. Lower the heat to medium and cook until softened, 8 to 10 minutes.
Add the garlic, ginger, cumin, and coriander and cook 2 minutes more.
Once the squash is cooled, scoop out the meat and add it to the onion and celery mix. Add the stock, salt and pepper. Increase heat to high to bring the soup to a simmer, then lower the heat to low, partially cover and cook 8 to 10 minutes.
Remove from heat. Use an immersion blender if you have one, or I just used my Ninja to purée the soup. You will have to blend a little bit at a time. I blend some and then put the blended mix in a bowl before I start on the next batch.
Add more salt to taste. Sprinkle with lime juice, chopped cilantro, and a dash of herbs de provence. I serve the soup in large mugs (I got this Cat Mug from my mother-in-law and put it to good use) and I also use my Dutch Oven from Martha Stewart. See below for details.
I found this squash soup recipe from Simply Recipes, but I used more squash and tweaked it a little bit. They have a lot of good recipe ideas. Enjoy!
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