February's Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

One day it is 60 degrees and the next we are having an ice storm! That's expected during this month before spring settles in. Face weather adversary with a bowl of love! We are nearing the end of our Black History Month, read slave's thoughts at the end of our recipe.

Roasted butternut squash makes a divine soup that you will never find from a can. Vegetables always react well to roasting and who minds having the oven on during these chilly days? 

 

Ingredients

• Approximately (3) butternut squash, peeled & cut into cubes
• 2 Tbs Unsalted butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt + 2 tsp white pepper
• 32 oz container of lower salt chicken broth
• ½ cup honey
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• ½ cup non fat half & half
• ¼ tsp nutmeg
  

Directions
Heat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Do your cutting.
Cutting and peeling the squash is NOT an easy task. Do not believe people who say just use a vegetable peeler. Ha Ha! First cut the two ends off.

Cut off the neck. Then cut the “bulb” down the middle.

With an ice cream scoop or sharp teaspoon, scoop out the seeds of the bulb part. Cut into cubes.

 
Now the “neck”, cut down the sides taking the skin off then slice and cube.
As you cut, place the cubes into a large bowl. Discard the seeds & strings.

Add melted butter with salt & pepper to the squash and stir until well coated.

Since I am serving with some roasted bratwurst, I coat them with oil and cut open the ends.
Line a large baking sheet with foil and spread the squash across evenly. 
 

Place in the oven and roast for 35 to 45 minutes or until the flesh is soft and tender. Test with a fork, the pieces should be soft and the edges starting to brown. The roasting imparts a special flavor that makes this soup so good.

Remove the brats and cover to keep warm. 

 Check temperature it should read 155 degrees and be a nice golden brown. 
 

Mince the onion into a small bowl. Sweat the onions in oil in the dutch oven then add the squash.

 
Add the broth, honey and ginger. Place over medium heat and bring to a simmer, for approximately 10 – 15 minutes.
 

Carefully using a stick blender, puree the mixture until smooth. The scalding liquid can really burn, so take your time.
Stir in the half & half and return to a low simmer. Adjust the seasonings with salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
A nice crusty bread fresh from the oven can also be an extra hug!

What a bowl of love for these days when you never know what weather will greet you!


For our music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4LWIP7SAjY
Happy to be serving my Master

socialslave

To satisfy and restore.

To nourish, support and maintain.

To gratify, spoil, comfort and please,

to nurture, assist, and sustain

…..I cook!

Please buy slave's cookbook:

The Little Black Book of Indiscreet Recipes by Dan White http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F315Y4I/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_vAT4sb0934RTM via @amazon

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Some February thoughts as we hurry toward the end of Black History Month.

Countless brave souls have come before us. They have marched & fought and persisted in the face of unbelievable odds. There are those in our community that say these leaders would be disappointed and angry with us and our efforts today. Nonsense! Of course they want to be remembered. They want to show us what worked for them. But angry with us – NO!

I remember in early marches of the 70's the fear we felt. Any popping sound could have been gunfire. Any odor could have been tear gas. Any pain could have been our bones braking under a night stick.

Even during the “Rage Against the Night” march in Washington DC during the 1992 showing of the Aids Memorial quilt we were surrounded more by love than by hatred.

We must hold tightly onto that love.

I remember as we passed by the White House that night seeing First Lady Barbara Bush in the window watching. No doubt her advisers warned her against being seen. Still in that moment, she was not First Lady of the republican administration. She was a mother who understood the grief and love of those who passed by that night.

When we let go of love and embrace hatred we usurp our right to achieve. We become a mob monster. A hated thing in itself that will surely be destroyed.

Love has always been our strength. Carry it with you in everything you do. Embrace it and it will allow you to achieve!

Your end goal should never be “winning to their losing”. “We win – You lose”, We are right therefore You must perish. That kind of division is an easy trap. It has led to even less problem solving than the gridlock we push against.

Anger and rage are powerful energies yet they have no long term good. It is like slick tires spinning on a patch of ice. Its motivation quickly turns to frustration. Goals become negatives. Our solidarity crumbles in depression.

Embrace love, show love to those who disagree with us! LOL that will really piss them off! Yet seriously love is the greatest force in this life. Feel it, use it.

It will make you whole and fortify you against the northern winds. Allow love to motivate you, hold it tight, and make it part of your goal.