Curry Butternut Soup

          It's a crisp day here in MA and I'm preparing to graduate while also prepping for a busy summer job. I thought I'd take time to update you all with some recipes I have been doing to lately. Specifically this soup, and a salsa I'll post later, have been my weekly staples. Oh, and I finally got an immersion blender! This is exciting because I will no longer have to laboriously use a regular blender to puree this soup.


          This soup is great, it's simple to make, cheap and packed with fiber. I learned how to make it over Christmas Break from my pseudo-parents the Thompsons. I've especially enjoyed it because I have been trying to cut back on my meat consumption and add more vegetables into my diet. The soup is fairly spicy and will definitely warm you up in this cold weather.

                       Ingredients:                 Equipment Needed: 
                         -1 Butternut Squash               -Knife + Cutting Board
                         -1 Apple                               -Large Pot
                         -1 Onion                              -Immersion or Regular Blender
                         -3-4 Tb Curry Powder           -Stirring Spoon
                         -Canola or Coconut Oil         -Potato Peeler                    
                         -5-7 Cups Water                  
                         -3/4-1 Cup Coconut Milk
                         -Pinch of Sugar
                         -Salt to Taste
                         -A dash of Cayenne Pepper (optional)


Preparation/Cook Time: 45 Minutes
Serves: 6-8
Difficulty Rank: Takes Some Work


          Basically all the soup composes of is the squash and apple and an onion. I don't think it matters what kind of apple or onion you use, I used a yellow onion and a Fuji apple. I'm also using a coarse sea salt and I use around 1-2 Tb depending on how much soup there is; if your'e using a finer salt, I'd salt more cautiously since the finer grain will pack a stronger punch—remember, always salt to taste, do not just put in salt without regard to the volume of the soup—. For the oil you can use canola or olive, I use coconut oil; For rounding out the soup, I use coconut milk, which adds a delicate and creamy dimension to the flavor; regular cream will work too, although the flavor is less interesting. If you have an immersion blender, that's great! If you only have a regular blender or food processor then you will have to puree the soup with these. Picking the curry powder is important, I recommend just getting McCormick "Curry Powder" not "Madras Curry" or another variation; this is because Madras has cumin in it which adds a bitter undertone to the soup. The only other tip I have in regard to the curry is to add 2 Tb at the beginning and put in the last 1-2 Tb after the soup is done*; this prevents the soup from being too spicy, while still giving a full curry flavor. Just remember, add the curry, salt and coconut milk to taste, since squash come in all different sizes and you may need more or less of those than I recommended.


*When you heat spices they release more flavor and in the case of curry, make the dish hotter, hence the adding it in 2 separate batches.

In-a-nutshell Directions:

1. Cut the produce into small chunks.

2. Heat the pot with oil and 2 TB of Curry.

3. Adding Apples & Onions.       4. Add Squash & Water

3. Add apples and onions in, cook till soft.

4. Add squash and water in.

5. When soft puree with immersion blender or blend incrementally in regular blender.

6. Turn off heat and add coconut milk.

7. Add 2 TB more of Curry.

8. Salt to taste (approx: 2 TB).

Detailed Directions:

1. Cut the produce into small chunks. They can be pretty indistinct as long as they are small enough to stir around and cook quickly.

2. Heat the pot with enough oil to coat the apple and onion chunks. Add in just 2 TB of curry powder and stir in with the oil and let the spice heat for a minute.

5. Bracing the Blender

3. After the spice starts to heat up and be aromatic, add the apples and onions in; cook these for 10 minutes or until they are soft.

4. Add the squash chunks and water in; you want to add enough water to slightly submerge all the squash, but don't add to much water or else you will have to wait forever for the soup to boil down to the right consistency.

Burning Soup Splatters

5. When the squash has softened, puree the soup with an immersion blender. If you don't have one, you can use a regular blender, this takes significantly more time because you have to incrementally blend it in small batches. If you end up using a regular blender, make sure to NOT fill the blender more than halfway; if you do, all the hot steam will cause the top to explode off—seriously, burning hot soup ended up all over the counter and me, not the best experience as you can see—. To prevent this, get a towel and brace the lid firmly down with your hand.

6. After the soup is blended,  simmer it for a few more minutes and then turn off heat and add the coconut milk.

7. The add 2 TB more of curry powder and a dash of cayenne if you want.

8. Finally, salt to taste; I use about 2 TB but make sure to salt slowly since over-salted soup is gross. Adjust the coconut milk and curry if you want more of either. To finish I garnished with some pumpkin seeds.