BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP WITH CANNELLINI BEANS + GREENS

Is Thanksgiving really next week? No way.


I'm not sharing standard Thanksgiving dinner fare with you today. Instead I wanted to give you a mellow and simple fall soup recipe that could easily serve a crowd of friends and family over the long holiday weekend. You may just want to make a pot of it to have on hand for a soothing non-turkey meal - I love the indulgence of a Thanksgiving spread, but my belly also begs for healthy breaks and this soup does the trick.


We make a pot of beans a week around here and a portion of them always end up in a soup of some sort. P, the kids and I all enjoy the protein kick without the meat. When I found Alice Waters' recipe for White Bean and Butternut Squash Soup the fall flavors appealed to me, but I worried that the soup sounded a bit starchy. Trusting Alice, I went ahead and made the soup and it was delicious and really quite delicate and flavorful. The sweetness of the squash is so nice with the creamy beans and there's plenty of broth to lighten things up. I did add greens to the pot just to give the soup yet another texture and nutritional hit. I used puntarelle because that's what we've got sprouting in our garden. Next time I'll use chard - the tender leaves and mild flavor would be just right here. Keep in mind that you can easily adapt this soup to be completely vegetarian or even vegan by using a good veggie stock instead of the chicken broth.


What are your plans for Thanksgiving? I'd love to hear about your favorite holiday recipes and traditions.

Recipe Note: 

• If you are using dried beans, be sure to soak them the night before. 

ZUCCHINI RIBBON PASTA

Okay,  this isn't really "pasta." Can you forgive me?

A couple of years ago the idea of making pasta out of shaved zucchini was buzzing around the food world (like the food section of the New York Times.) This was about the time doctors told me to get gluten out of our kitchen. So, any pasta that didn't involve wheat called my name. Since then, grated zucchini - usually sauteed, and topped with pesto - has gone into steady rotation at our house.

For you, I wanted to refine this simple idea a bit, give it a little flare, and here we are...

This recipe is delicious on its own, or works as side dish for grilled fish or chicken. If you want to turn the zucchini ribbons into a more substantial vegetarian meal, serve on a bed quinoa with a little additional lemon juice/olive oil vinaigrette.

SUMMER HARVEST SOUP

I have been baking way too many sweets these days. Galettes, scones, truffles, caramels, etc. I am CRAVING veggies. We have been eating plenty of summer salads, but it has been too long since I cooked a recipe with veggies in the staring role.

Looking for veggie inspiration, I breezed through the sweet home-grown cookbook SoupLove and was drawn to their Summer Squash and Dill Soup. As I got ready to make their soup, my creative juices got going and I ended up morphing their inspiration into my own summer soup recipe.

My mom's Bolinas onions, our own backyard celery blossoms, freshly harvested garlic, and juicy Meyer lemon - all lovingly cultivated - brought depth and soul to this summery soup.

INGREDIENTS
Inspired by Summer Squash and Dill Soup 
in Soup love by Rebecca Stevens and Nabil Samandi

• 2 medium yellow onions, thinly sliced
• 1 very small head of garlic, pressed
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh celery blossoms (or 1/2 teaspoon dried celery seeds)
• sea salt
• pinch cayenne pepper 
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 3 cups diced butterball potatoes
• 4-5 cups homemade chicken stock
• 6 cups diced mixed summer squash
• ground white pepper
• freshly chopped dill

celery blossoms

In a large stock pot or dutch oven, heat olive oil over low heat. Add onions, garlic, celery blossoms, cayenne, and pinch of salt. Stew covered over low heat for about 15 minutes until onions have softened.

When onions are soft, turn up heat on stove to medium and lightly caramelize the onions.

Pour white wine into the pot and scrape any brown tasty onion bits from the bottom. Reduce wine by half.

Add diced butterball potatoes and chicken stock. Simmer until potatoes are tender.

Add squash (and a cup of water or stock if the liquid looks too low). Cover pot and continue to simmer until everything is tender.

Let cool to room temp and then coarsely blend with an immersion blender. Adjust seasoning by adding salt if necessary. Toss in the chopped dill fronds and sprinkle a bit of ground white pepper.

Reheat soup to serve warm and garnish with a dollop of the Chilled Dill Yogurt and maybe even an extra sprig of dill.

FOOD 52 Editor's Pick

Butternut Squash roasted with Sage and Coconut

Peering into my Riverdog Farm box, I discovered a butternut squash and some luscious kale. I decided to make a stew featuring these two ingredients. (I will post that recipe soon.) After making my stew, I found myself with half of a butternut squash all prepped with nowhere to go. One could say this improvised recipe was an afterthought or a bi-product of the stew, but I think its delicious simplicity is worth sharing with you.



INGREDIENTS

• 1/2 butternut squash (about 2 cups), cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 1/2 tablespoons raw organic coconut oil
• 1 dozen sage leaves
• sea salt

Preheat oven to 425. Gently melt coconut oil. Spread out squash pieces in a roasting pan. Toss squash with melted coconut oil. Generously salt. (Do not crowd squash pieces - this will insure a good caramelizing.) Place in hot oven. Give the pan a shake every 5 minutes or so. When squash is almost finished cooking and is becoming nicely caramelized, add the sage and toss all ingredients to integrate sage and coat the leaves in coconut oil. Return pan to the oven and roast for a few more minutes until sage leaves are crispy but not burnt. Season with additional salt, if necessary. Serve and enjoy!


.

Creamy Kabocha Soup

Every time I see my friend Meg, we chat about what we've been cooking and by conversation's end, we are both salivating and swapping recipes. The other day, she sent me this simple recipe for Kabocha soup. I happened to already have one of these beautiful squash, thanks to my generous neighbors (remember those lemon cucumbers and summer squash); so I figured this soup was meant to be.

The amazing buttery, curry fragrance created by the roasting squash and onions is reason enough to make this dish!



Ingredients

2 Kabocha squash
2 yellow onions
6 tablespoons butter
4 teaspoons curry powder
8 cups chicken broth
salt to taste
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/4-1/2 teaspoon cayenne
plain yogurt

Preheat oven to 375.

Cut squash in half and scoop out seeds. Cut onions in half and peel. Melt butter and mix in the curry powder. Smear the insides of the squash and onion with the butter mixture.

Place onion and squash cut-side down in a roasting pan. Bake for an hour or so, until squash is squishy and soft.

Scoop out flesh of squash, and blend with onion and enough chicken broth to achieve a rich creamy texture. Season with plenty of salt, white pepper, and cayenne.

Garnish with dollop of yogurt.

Serves 6-8

Summer Squash Risotto with Meyer Lemon

Is it fall or still summer? In the Bay Area, we hover between seasons this time of year. My tomatoes are finally approaching the end of their run, and I am savoring the last tastes of summer. My neighbor who gave me the delicious lemon cucumbers for the Tzatziki, also brought over these beautiful summer squash. In my own garden, I haven’t had much luck with squash, but I have grown some squash blossoms, herbs, and Meyer lemon to add to the dish. Once again, the bounty from my garden, or a friend’s, dictates my meals. I ended up cooking a summer squash risotto to serve with grilled Coho salmon for Paul’s parents who are visiting this week.

I always look to Alice Waters to inspire me and part of this recipe is adapted from Vegetables. This recipe is combined with one for lemon risotto from Patricia Wells’ Trattoria, an infallibly great cookbook.

Ingredients

¼ - ½ pound summer squash
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 shallots
7-8 cups chicken broth
2 cups Arborio rice
1/3 cup white or rose wine
6 squash blossoms
herbs of your choice ( I used basil and mint from my garden)
juice of one Meyer lemon
zest from the lemon
¾ cup grated Parmesan
salt and pepper to taste


Heat chicken stock in a separate pot and keep going at a low simmer throughout cooking.

Chop squash into bite-sized pieces. Sauté in 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat until golden brown. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Peel and mince shallots. Cook in heavy bottomed saucepan with 2 tablespoons butter. After a few minutes and the shallots are soft but not brown, add the rice. Stir to coat with butter and shallots. Cook for a few minutes until rice glistens. Add wine until almost absorbed. Add one ladle full of warm broth. Stir frequently. Maintain a gentle simmer and continue to add broth, keeping a consistent veil of liquid covering the cooking rice.

When the risotto has cooked for 12-15 minutes and still has a firm bite, add chopped herbs and squash blossoms (sliced lengthwise). Cook for approximately 5 minutes more, still stirring and keeping a good layer of broth covering the rice.

When risotto is cooked through, but not at all mushy, remove from heat and add sautéd squash, lemon juice, zest, 2 last tablespoons butter, and Parmesan. Season generously with salt and pepper. Stir and cover for a minute or two, then eat.

As we sat down to eat, I found out my father-in-law really doesn’t like squash. But he loved this risotto. For me, risotto is the ultimate comfort food.

Serves 8 as a side dish

Summer Vegetable Frittata

In an effort to be more environmentally and financially conscientious, our family has greatly reduced its meat intake lately. I have struggled, though, to find meals that are enjoyable for everyone and feel substantial enough after years of having meat main courses.

I've often made quiches, using the store bought shells, but have recently migrated to this simple, yummy, and healthy frittata recipe - adapted from Alice Waters' The Art of Simple Food.

The great thing about this recipe is its versatility. You have zucchini - use it. You have lots of onions - great. Asparagus - perfect! You can also play with the veggie to egg ratio depending upon the meal you want. I tend to load on the veggies and use the egg more as a binding.

I use an oven-proof non-stick frying pan.

Ingredients:

Veggies (2-6 cups chopped)

Eggs (3-8)

Herbs

Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper

Garlic (3ish cloves, chopped)

Preheat oven to 350.

Saute all your veggies in olive oil, sprinkled with salt. Get them to the tenderness you want, as they will not cook much once combined with eggs. Today I used about 8 zucchini and some spring onions.

Meanwhile, crack eggs and combine with chopped garlic and herbs. Today, I used 5 eggs and a lot of basil from the garden (I would have added mint also but thought it might push the kids over the edge). Whisk mixture.

Once veggies are done cooking, mix them into the egg mixture.

Add 2T more olive oil to pan so that it will be well-lubricated (and will make it easier to remove frittata). Pour in egg and veggie mixture after a few seconds of heating. As the eggs set, lift the edges with a spatula to allow the egg to flow underneath. Continue to cook until mostly set.

I added a generous amount of goat cheese to the top.

Place in the oven for 7-10 mins (depending upon number of eggs, etc). Today, mine cooked for 9 mins. Check it until it appears set on top.

Invert onto plate (I invert it again bc I think it's prettier that way!).

Enjoy! I've served this as a bfast, a lunch, and a dinner. I recently made a couple for a dinner party, served with a big hearty salad and bread. Delish.