salvage the squash

I roasted a buttercup squash the other night and the result was pasty, dry and rejected by all.  Today that  squash got a second chance in this soup (loosely based on this recipe):

• 1 medium onion, peeled and coarsely chopped
• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
• pinch of curry powder
• touch of cayenne pepper
• 2 tart apples, peeled, cored and coarsely chopped
• 2/3 cup sherry (I would not have though of this, but it is an excellent addition; like white wine in the carrot and ginger soup from Silver Palate cookbook)
• about 3 cups of chunks of roasted buttercup squash (which had been peeled before roasting)
• 6 cups chicken broth (I made this yesterday from chicken necks)
• apple cider vinegar, salt and pepper to taste

Sweat the onion in the butter.  Add the garlic, ginger, curry powder and cayenne and cook for a minute.  Add apples and sherry, bring to a boil and cook for a few minutes.  Add squash and broth, bring to simmer and cook for about 20 minutes until everything is soft.  Puree and add water to correct consistancy.  Balance flavours with vinegar, salt and pepper.

The soup, she is good!

coconut curry soup with fish

I hadn't made enough food for supper tonight, so I whipped this up to fill in the corners.  ML loved it.

• 2 French shallots, finely chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp butter
• pinky finger sized piece of fresh ginger, peeled
• 1 tbsp curry powder
• small pinch of cayenne pepper
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1 carrot, julienned
• 1 small zucchini, julienned
• about 200 g frozen haddock fillets
• about 1/2 cup cooked basmati rice
• juice of one lime
• handful of coriander leaves

Sweat the shallots and garlic in the butter.  Add curry powder and fry for a minute.  Add pepper, ginger, stock, coconut milk, carrot and zucchini and bring to a boil.  Cook for 10 minutes.  Add fish and rice and return to boil.  Cover and simmer for about 10 minute until fish is cooked through and flakes apart.  Add salt to taste (about 1 tsp) and the lime juice and garnish with coriander.

I had baked some sweet potatoes in their jackets while making this soup (about an hour at 400 F) and found spoonfuls of the sweet potatoes complimented the soup well.