In western New York I haven’t been able to find cubed Butternut Squash anywhere, but most of the roadside farm markets have plenty of squash in the late summer and throughout fall, so we buy it fresh … it just takes a bit longer to prepare.

Here is the recipe I have developed …

Ingredients

• 1 whole butternut squash*
• 2 cans vegetable broth
• 1/4 tsp. ginger (or to taste)
• 1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spices
• 1 tsp. cayenne or chili powder (or to taste)
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 tsps. butter or olive oil

Directions

Prepare the butternut squash: using a strong, sharp knife cut the butternut squash lengthwise in half. Scoop out the seeds and any stringy part from the center. Place both halves face down in a glass baking dish. Bake in a 400 degree oven for forty-five minutes, or until tender.

Scoop the “meat” out of the squash, into a medium sized bowl or plastic container.

Pour one can of vegetable broth into blender; add one half of the squash. (It is important to blend the broth and the squash in two batches so you don’t risk overfilling the blender and suffering a burn as I did one time. ) Start the blender on low, increase the power incrementally until you reach a high speed at a puree setting. Blend for 45 seconds, or until no lumps of squash remain. Transfer mixture to large sauce pan or soup pot. Repeat with remaining broth and squash.

Add spices and butter/olive oil to soup. Bring soup to a low boil, reduce heat to medium and cook ten minutes or so.

Serve hot with grilled cheese sandwiches, homemade bread, or oyster crackers.

Serves four.

*Although I usually make this with butternut squash, I have also made it recently with acorn squash and it was wonderful. I used two acorn squash to replace one butternut squash, because they are smaller. However, the two cans of vegetable broth were not quite enough so I had to add a touch of water so the soup wouldn’t be too thick.

Note: You will need a blender for this recipe; we recently purchased the Hamilton Beach Wave-Power Blender and I am very happy with it for a number of reasons. My favorite feature I think is the extra large (44-oz) glass jar. When I make squash soup it is very important not to overfill the blender with soup ingredients because they can be hot and there was a time when I burned myself badly by overfilling my previous, normal sized blender jar. The Wave Power blender also has special blades that create a flow inside the jar that truly does mix everything up very evenly and smoothly. The jar also features a wide screw on base to help eliminate tipping. I recommend this blender if you are in the market for a one.