Haute Cuisine 1.13

This week's menu is butternut squash soup courtesy of Gourmet.com, and the rest of the kiwi and melon.  There was enough fruit left to make me 4 days of lunch - plenty of soup for four days and more.  I think one of these days I will be able to bum lunch off of Kaiser - most likely Thursday since there is a strike and they are feeding everyone so that people won't have to risk crossing a picket line, if there is one.  Here are the dishes...



Honeydew and Kiwi fruit salad with Mint flakes
(self-explanatory)


Butternut Squash Soup

  • 4 large shallots, chopped
  • medium carrot, chopped
  • celery rib, chopped
  • (15-oz) can diced tomatoes, drained
  • 3 large thyme sprigs
  • 1 Turkish or 1/2 California bay leaf
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 1/2 lb butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into (1-inch) cubes (about 31/2 cups)
  • cups water
  • 1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
  • Chopped walnuts

  • ACCOMPANIMENT: 

    softly whipped cream - optional
  • Cook shallots, carrot, celery, tomatoes, thyme, and bay leaf in oil in a 4- to 5-qt heavy pot over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 8 minutes.
  • Add squash, water, nutmeg, 1 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp pepper and simmer, covered, until squash is very tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Discard thyme and bay leaf.
  • Purée soup in batches in a blender until smooth (use caution when blending hot liquids). Thin soup if desired and season with salt and pepper.

Instead of using chestnuts (couldn't find any) I ended up using walnuts as a garnish and nutmeg as a garnish as well.  Turned out nice to me.

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