Butternut Squash Soup

'After reviewing a few recipes for butternut soup I put together my own vegan version. It's so creamy and satisfying. I think you will love it as much as I do!

Sauté until almost tender:
1 TB olive oil
2 carrots diced
1 onion diced
2 stalks of celery diced

Add:
2 potatoes diced small - continue to sauté for a few more minutes. Add a bit of the hot water if you need to.

Add:
6 cups of boiling water
2 tubes of vegetable broth  or replace half of water with liquid broth 

Cook until veggies are tender.

Add:
2 cups of roasted pureed butternut squash
Season with salt and pepper
Dash of cinnamon (optional)
Gently cook for another 10 minutes to meld flavors. Transfer to processor in batches and blend or use an immersion blender. Serve.

Soup will thicken once refrigerated. Add a splash of water, broth, or plant milk to thin.

Roasting Butternut Squash

I am in love with this vegetable. So creamy and yummy! It's very simple to roast a butternut squash. Just line your rimmed cookie sheet with foil, cut washed squash in half and remove seeds - saving them for roasting later. Next rub a few drops of olive oil on the cut sides, season with salt and pepper then place cut side down on pan and roast in a 400 degree oven for 45 minutes. Skin will be blistered and slightly brown. Test by inserting knife beneath the skin in to the flesh. Remove from oven and cool. The skin will now easily peel off, place chunks of cooked squash in the food processor and puree. It is now ready for incorporating into your favorite recipes.  Check out my next recipe - creamy, satisying, butternut squash soup.

Vegetable Broth

Shop At Amazon

I found some tasty convenient concentrated veggie broth packed in small tubes, twelve to a box, at Trader Joe's. Lately they haven't had it in stock. I did some on line scouting and found Savory Choice Liquid Reduced Sodium Vegetable Broth Concentrate at Amazon, and I believe it is made by the same company. Now I have plenty to make pots and pots of soup.

Margherita Rustica Pizza - In a Skillet!

©DeniseKappaPhotography 

It's too hot to turn on the oven. Experimenting with pizza dough made with my KichenAid mixer and "baked" in an electric skillet. Works if you preheat skillet to 375 - no oil just put the dough in the pan - cook till nice and brown on one side - carefully flip and add toppings, then continue to cook till the second side is brown. Recipe and further instructions are on the Ciao Italia website including video. I made it vegan, by omitting the cheese. I made it healthier by using white whole wheat flour for half of the flour. Next time I will have to remember to increase the water - whole wheat flour always seems to require more than a recipe with regular white flour.

How to Make Soup

Don't know how to make soup? Do you think it's hard to do? Don't buy it at the store - it's not healthy. Learn to make your own. Very simple, few ingredients - all of which should be in your pantry and refrigerator at all times. So if you've never made soup, pull out a big pot and watch this short video from About.com. The only things I would do differently is skip the cheese and if using pasta cook it separately, and then add it to bowls of the cooked soup. Soup freezes well, so keep some in the freezer for fast meals or in case someone is feeling a little under the weather.

Summer Harvest

©Denise Kappa Photography

Back from Jamie's Flea Market in Oberlin OH. Everything has been thoroughly washed and dried. Most of it will be sliced and/or diced, frozen and stored in freezer bags. I'll have lots of peppers, zucchini and squash for soups, chili and stews all winter long.