butternut squash & coconut soup

A NYT Food post for a butternut squash soup popped up on my fbook newsfeed and since Rock’s been down with a mystery virus and was just getting out of the hospital, I thought that would be a perfect thing to make for him.  Then the next day I wasn’t feeling the best so I didn’t want to bother searching for the recipe.  I had already gotten the squash and  knew there was butternut squash, coconut milk, some curry powder and cashews involved so I figured I could throw something together with minimal effort using those ingredients.  I grew up eating a lot of Malaysian curry so I wanted to incorporate that but you can use whatever type of curry powder you like.  It turned out really good, all 3 of us loved it, and we had the leftover soup for lunch today with some fresh scones.

This makes about 4 generous servings.

1 medium butternut squash  /  1 onion  /  2 cloves garlic  /  1 can coconut milk  /  3 to 4 cups vegetable stock  /  1 cup raw cashews  (this gives the soup a thicker and creamier consistency)  /  1 tsp Malaysian curry powder  /  1 tsp cumin  /  1 tsp turmeric  /  avocado or your preferred cooking oil… coconut oil if you want to keep in with the coconut theme!  /  freshly cracked black pepper

Carefully peel and cut up the butternut squash into roughly 1 inch chunks, chop up the onion and mince the garlic.  In a large pot over medium heat to medium-high heat, heat up a couple splashes of oil and throw in the onion, garlic, and spices.  Let it cook, giving it a stir every now and again, until the onions have softened up and then toss in the cashews and squash.

Stir a bit and let it cook for a few minutes and then add enough vegetable stock to cover the ingredients.  I’m pretty lazy so I just added water straight to the pot and then vegetable stock mix.  Let it come to a gentle boil and then turn the heat down to low-medium.  Toss a lid on leaving a crack for steam to escape, and let it simmer away for about 30 minutes.

Remove from heat and using a hand blender, blend until smooth.  Or if you don’t have one then you can always transfer to a blender in batches.  Place back on the stove and stir in the coconut milk.  Let that all meld together for a few minutes and it’s ready!  If you want, top with some cracked black pepper.

A nice warming soup.  Enjoy!