Butternut Squash Soup

ButternutSquashSoup
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic

As a vegetarian, I don't have a lot of use for my subscription to Fine Cooking magazine anymore. For Christmas I asked for (and received) a sub to Vegetarian Times.
I'd saved all my copies of FC, and so went through them and gave most of them to my friend Jeannie, who teaches Family & Consumer Science at my school. The only ones I kept whole were the holiday baking issues. But I did tear out a page or two of some of them...recipes that I thought appealed to me and might be likely candidates for my kitchen.
So tonight I made Butternut Soup with Cumin & Coriander. My only adaptation was that I used vegetable stock rather than chicken. The soup is simply delicious! It's not something to whip up on a weeknight unless you want to try it with frozen squash. This recipe is made with roasted squash, which takes about 90 minutes to achieve in the oven.

2 T olive oil
1 T unsalted butter
1 medium onion, diced
1/2 t kosher salt
3/4 t ground cumin
1/2 t ground coriander
1-141/2 oz can diced tomatoes with their juice
Freshly ground black pepper
Flesh of a roasted 2-lb butternut squash*
3 C vegetable stock
GARNISH: plain yogurt or heavy cream, minced fresh parsley

*Roasting the squash: Cut the squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Rub with olive oil, sprinkle with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper. Roast in a 400 degree oven for about 90 minutes, or until dark brown and very tender. Let cool and then scoop out the flesh

Soup:
Heat oil and butter in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and salt. Saute for 2 minutes and then cover and let sweat until translucent, about 3 minutes. Uncover and cook, stirring, another 3 to 5 minutes, until the onions start to brown.
Add the cumin and coriander and cook, stirring, for about 30 seconds. Add in the tomatoes and season with pepper. Bring to simmer, cover, and let cook for about 10 minutes.
Add the flesh of the squash, breaking it up a bit. Add the vegetable stock, bring to a simmer, cover, and let simmer for 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes, uncover, turn off the heat, and let cool a bit. Using an immersion blender, blend the soup gently, careful not to splatter hot soup.
Season to taste, warm up if needed, and serve.
Makes about 6 cups.