Curried Butternut Squash Soup

By Kathryn Washburn Breighner 

Perry and I have both been in the kitchen with squash soups, his using buttercup and mine using butternut. In the fall, squash soups are popular as these hearty winter vegetables hold up to a myriad of flavors.

I wanted a savory, curry soup. Many of the squash soup recipes call for cubing the uncooked squash and then simmering in stock. Since I like the sweet flavor that roasting brings to vegetables, I roasted the butternut squash first.  I pierced two medium size butternut squash and roasted on a baking sheet at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes until a knife could pierce the squash and come out easily. Then I cut them in half and let them cool.

While they were cooking, I sauteed:

1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced, in
3 T olive oil

As the vegetables softened, I added 2 t of curry powder and stirred for a minute (the fragrance that comes from the pan is amazing!).  To this pan, I added 1 cup of water and brought to a simmer.

I scooped out the cooked squash and pureed in a food processor. To the squash, I added the water/garlic/curry/water along with 2 1/2 c of water and 3 t of chicken base (Penzey's).  Puree until smooth adding more water, if desired, for a thinner soup

Back to the pot went the puree with some salt and pepper and it simmered on low heat for 15 minutes. The soup was served with a dollop of sour cream. Wow!

Savory Butternut Squash Patties with Curry

By Kathryn Washburn Breighner

I had some leftover butternut squash that I wanted to use in a savory pancake version. What I came up with is a real winner--these were outstanding.

This time of year, I love various squashes. I am a fan of spaghetti squash baked and tossed with just olive oil and garlic. I picked up a large butternut squash for about $1 at the farmer's market and baked it--pierced with a knife, baked on a cookie sheet at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes until a knife easily pierced through it.

Next, I cut open the squash, let it cool, scooped out the seeds and strings, and then scooped out the cooked squash, tossed with butter and salt and pepper. Easy and good. But I had about 2 c leftover and was looking for something different. So this is what I put together:

2 c cooked butternut squash
1/2 t garlic powder
2 t fresh chopped parsley
1 t curry powder
2 T flour
salt and pepper

I blended the ingredients into a thick mixture. I debated adding an egg as Grandma Washburn always did with mashed potato cakes (oh, those were tasty) but decided against it as the consistency of the mixture was nice and thick.  My intent was to add some panko bread crumbs to the mixture but it didn't need any extra filler. I was a bit skeptical of this mixture minus the egg and panko but what did I have to lose--I was working with leftovers!

I formed the mixture into patties--not too thick--and sauteed in hot oil, turning twice until each side was a crispy brown. Amazing flavor. The savory patties will definitely appear again in our kitchen.