Mangia! Roasted Butternut Squash and Carrot Soup

Roasted Butternut Squash and Carrot Soup with Salad

Preheat oven to 375.
Peel carrots and cut off ends
Cut butternut squash length wise and remove seeds
Line baking dish with foil and drizzle with olive oil
Place veggies on baking dish and sprinkle them with salt, pepper, sugar, balsamic vinegar, molasses
Turn the butternut squash over, skin side up
Bake for 45 minutes
While the veggies are baking, prepare the rest of the goodies.
Dice half a yellow onion
1/8 teaspoon of ginger or 1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
1 teaspoon of minced garlic or 2 fresh cloves of crushed garlic
Once the veggies are finished, remove, once cooled enough to touch, remove skin from butternut squash and dice all veggies.
In a large pot, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter over medium heat
Add onion and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes
Add ginger and garlic for 1 minute
Add 4 cups of chicken broth, diced butternut squash and carrots, 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste
Bring to a boil, reduce heat, simmer uncovered for 30 minutes
Remove from heat and let cool slightly, about 10 minutes
In batches, ladle soup into a blender and puree until smooth
Return soup to pot and add 1/2 cup half-half
Garnish with creme fraiche or mascarpone cheese
I served a salad with the spring mix, 1 large tomato, shredded cheese and red onion.
Mangia!


roasted tomato bruschetta for tomorrow
Increase the oven temperature to 400.
Rinse 2 pints of grape tomatoes
In mixing bowl combine, tomatoes, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper, stir
Scoop tomatoes into a cast iron skillet and bake for 30 minutes
Remove tomatoes from skillet into a serving dish
Cut tomatoes with kitchen scissors (no rhyme or reason required - I haphazardly cut until I was satisfied with the chunkiness)
Add 1 tablespoon of red wine vinegar, 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, 1 minced garlic clove
Serve warm or cold over crusty bread or crackers
Mangia!