Tuesday, November 6, 2018

Squash Soup with Cranberry Puree #CranberryWeek #KitchenMatrixCookingProject

The creamy, earthy goodness of this Butternut squash soup is brightened up with the addition of a sweet, tart cranberry puree, making a lovely presentation for the first course on your holiday dinner table.


Welcome to Cranberry Week........


The crew from the Festive Foodies group is getting together all week long to celebrate everything Cranberry.  This fun event started yesterday and is being hosted by Caroline of Caroline's Cooking.

I missed posting with the group yesterday but will be joining in the festivities for the next three days, starting with this recipe. This soup is also being linked to the Kitchen Matrix Cooking Project in which I participate with my friends Cam of Culinary Adventures with Camilla and Karen of Karen's Kitchen Stories.  I chose the categories for this month and my first choice was the section of this cookbook by Mark Bittman that contains Vegetable Soup recipes.


Fall is the perfect time to enjoy soups.  Especially soups made with seasonal produce like squash, yams, carrots and cranberries.  Let's see what soups Cam and Karen chose to share with us today.



The recipe I'm sharing is perfect for Cranberry Week as well, being topped with a decorative swirl of cranberry puree.


This cranberry puree is quick and easy to make.  I adapted my version from a recipe that I found on Food Network courtesy of Sara Moulton.  The puree in the recipe was made using ruby port wine.  I used a tawny port wine.  Ruby port wine is younger and sweeter than tawny port which is more mature and earthy.


The soup, itself, is a combination of the recipe by Moulton, the recipe from Bittman and my own creativity.  Butternut squash soup is one of my favorites and I have shared recipes for you a couple of times since I've been writing this blog.  



In this recipe the squash is roasted and in this soup the squash is left chunky and shares the pot with kale.  In today's recipe we combine the ingredients with chicken broth and simmered until tender.  Then you can puree it, either in a food processor, heavy duty blender or an immersion blender.  Finish it off with a bit of cream and it is wonderful.  Add a swirl of the puree and it is stupendously awesome!!

I'm excited to be sharing this recipe as part of Cranberry Week - now in it's third year! See all the tasty cranberry recipes being shared today below and follow #cranberryweek on social media for more ideas all week long.  You will find my printable recipe below the links to the others.

#cranberries, #squash, #butternutsquash, #quick, #easy, #soup, #firstcourses, #elegant, #Vegetarian, #creamy, #Thanksgiving, #Christmas, #holiday
Soup, First Course, Vegetarian, Holidays
American
Yield: 4 servingPin it

Butternut Squash Soup with Cranberry Puree

prep time: 15 minscook time: 30 minstotal time: 45 mins
The creamy, earthy goodness of this Butternut squash soup is brightened up with the addition of a sweet, tart cranberry puree, making a lovely presentation for the first course on your holiday dinner table.

ingredients:

4 oz. fresh cranberries
1/4 c. tawny port wine
2 T. sugar
1 small onion, diced
1 carrot, sliced
2 T. butter
pinch of nutmeg
1 T. ginger paste
salt and pepper, to taste
12 oz. butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into chunks
1 small yam, peeled and diced
4 c. chicken broth
1/2 c. half and half

instructions:

Place the cranberries, wine and sugar into a small saucepan over med high heat.  Bring to a boil and cook, stirring occasionally until the cranberries burst and the mixture starts to thicken, about 5 minutes.  Run through the fine sieve of a food mill placed over a bowl, discarding the solids.  Alternately, you can puree in a food processor and then press the mixture through a fine sieve to remove any solids.  Set aside.

Melt the butter in a medium pot over medium  heat.  Add the onions and carrots.  Cook until the onion is softened, stir in the nutmeg, ginger, salt and pepper.  Add the squash, yam and broth.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cook until vegetables are very tender, about 20-25 minutes. Transfer to a heavy duty blender and puree until smooth.  Return to the pot and stir in the cream.  Rewarm gently, if needed.

Divide between 4 bowls.  Add a dollop of the cranberry puree and use a knife or chopstick to swirl it into a beautiful design before serving.

NOTES:

Inspired by the Kitchen Matrix Cookbook and a recipe found on the Food Network website.
Created using The Recipes Generator


16 comments:

  1. I'm so intrigued by this combination but can see I'm going to have to give it a try since I like both!

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  2. This has so many of my favorite flavors of Fall. Thanks, Wendy. It looks delicious.

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  3. It looks delicious. Love the colors together!

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  4. this looks heavenly! I love the combo!

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  5. I've made squash soup so many time but never thought to top it with cranberry. Such a great idea!

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  6. This soup looks yummy! What a great combo!

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  7. The sweet butternut squash and tart cranberries are a perfect pair. This soup would be great in a chilly fall day.

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