Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

Ignore that smudge of soup on the edge of the bowl

I had a butternut squash sitting on the counter and some homemade creme fraiche in the fridge. I thought the two would go rather nicely together.

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

1 butternut squash, cut into 1" cubes
3 T olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
3 sage leaves
4 sprigs thyme
1 celery stalk, diced
2 carrots, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 c white wine
3 c stock - either chicken or vegetable
1 c heavy cream
4 T parsley, chopped
salt/pepper
Serve with Toasted pepitas  and Creme Fraiche

Mix squash with 2 T olive oil and salt. Roast in a 400 preheated oven for about 30-40 minutes.

Meanwhile, saute onions, sage, thyme, and salt over a low flame in a dutch oven. Cook for a good 20 minutes so that onions become golden brown (you can add a pinch of sugar to help them along). Add celery and carrots and cook until carrots and celery start to brown - about 10 minutes.  Add garlic and cook until fragrant. Add wine and cook until almost all the wine has cooked off. Add the stock and bring to simmer.

The butternut squash should be starting to brown around the edges by now. Remove from oven and add to the soup. Add heavy cream and bring back to a simmer. Add parsley Remove soup from stove and puree. You can use a stick blender or do it in small batches in a food processor (I prefer the stick blender). Add salt and pepper to taste.  Top off with creme fraiche and pepitas.

Work-wise this was a very efficient soup.  While the butternut squash is cooking, you are making the rest of the soup. If you use the food processor, I think you would get a smoother soup but I like it with a little more texture (it is still pretty smooth). You might also need to add a little additional heavy cream or stock to make the puree a little looser. And since you started your homemade creme fraiche the night before and toasted your pepitas while the soup was cooking, you're all ready to go!