Vegan Butternut Squash and Carrot Soup

This week I decided to make a recipe for the Gluten Free Homemaker's Recipe Carnival - and this month's theme is Seasonal Soups. I know it is technically spring, but Boulder has not yet decided to go full on spring just yet. We’ve been teased by a few super warm and sunny days, but freezing cold 50 mph winds and low temps continue to make their sporadic appearances. So while I would love to make a meal of delicious fresh produce, this isn’t San Diego, and root vegetables and squashes are about as good as it gets. So I decided to make a warming soup this week with these durable plants that have sustained the cold (and quite dry) winter. Also…orange is my favorite color – so this meal was quite visually pleasing to my Hokie-proud self.

Vegan Butternut Squash Soup

Butternut Squash and Carrot Soup

Ingredients

1 medium sized butternut squash

4 carrots

1 parsnip

2 stalks of celery

1 small onion or ½ a large onion

1 tsp grated ginger

3-4 cloves of garlic minced

5 cups of water

Cinnamon, nutmeg, S&P, dash of cayenne

1 cup of toasted pecans to garnish

Dice onion and add to a large soup pot with ¼ cup of water. Sauté at medium – med-high. Mince garlic and ginger and add to pot. Finely chop and add celery. Cut carrots and parsnip into ½ inch chunks and throw in pot. Stir vegetables with each addition.  (Note-If veggies start to stick to pot, add a little more water and reduce heat slightly). Peel and cube butternut squash – I found the peeling of this big shapely thing to be very frustrating, but cutting it in half to separate the bulb part from the top helped a bit. Add to pot along with spices, then stir and sauté about 3-5 minutes. Add water, bring to a boil, and reduce to a simmer for about 30-45 minutes.

Once veggies are soft, turn off heat and you have a few options for pureeing. My soup master roommate had a small hand blender that surrounds the blade with a plastic cover, keeping soup from flying everywhere while also protecting your pot. Submerge the blade in the soup and puree to desired consistency. I left a few chunks for texture. You could also use a potato masher or throw the soup in the food processor. Once the butternut squash soup reaches your desired consistency, ladle into bowls, top with toasted pecans, drizzle with a bit of olive oil, and sprinkle pepper and paprika or cayenne on top.

This makes about 5 entrée sized soup bowls or about 12 cups of soup…or feeds 3 people if Brian is one of them.

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