I’ve made butternut squash soup for many years and it continues to be one of my favorites. It’s flavorful, easy, filling and low cost. You can literally feed your family for pennies. So I’m a fan, but it wasn’t until the other day that I made a curried, roasted butternut soup…and now I’m even a bigger fan of this vegetable.

Roasting the squash intensifies the flavor and releases its natural sugar. Adding curry changes the whole flavor dimension to one that becomes immediately more exotic by evoking the tastes of places such as India and Thailand. They blend perfectly with the creaminess of this pureed, delicious soup. And if you love hot and spicy like I do…add a dollop of your favorite heat! This is crushed red pepper in oil but you can drizzle sriachia or chili oil or whatever you like.

Ingredients

1 butternut squash

1 quart chicken broth (or vegetable) or enough to get to your desired thickness

1/2 cut half and half

1/4 cup olive oil (or just enough to lightly cover the bottom of the saucepan)

1 onion – medium diced

2 medium cloves garlic – mediu diced

2 tablespoons curry powder (or to taste)

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon lemon juice

Salt and pepper to taste

Instruction

Cut the squash in half (to make this easier microwave for about 3 minutes) and roast cut side down i a 350 degree (176.6 C) over for about 30 – 40 minutes or until easily pierced with a fork.

Discard the seeds and scoop out the squash from the skin and set aside.

In the meantime, add the oil to a large saucepan and heat until hot but not smoking over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until they begin to soften. Add the garlic and cook for about 30 seconds or until they begin to color.

Add the squash to the pan followed by all the rest of the ingredients except the cream. Stir and cook for about 5 minutes just to blend the flavors.

Puree the soup in batches. Return to the pan. Add the cream. Adjust the thickness and the spices and serve.