Roasted Buttercup Squash Soup (paired with Cross-Dye Napkins in Dark Gray)
serves 4
1.5 lbs buttercup squash halved and seeded (sub with amerbercup, hubbard or kabocha squash)
1/2 of large sweet onion, peeled (or 1 whole small sweet onion)
2 large carrots, peeled
1/2 large fennel bulb (or 1 whole small fennel)
3 cloves garlic with skin on
1/2 teaspoon sea salt + more to taste
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
1/4 cup white rice, rinsed
4 cups water
2 tablespoons low sodium tamari
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
several sprigs of fresh thyme or sage
Toppings
coconut milk or non-dairy unsweetened yogurt
maple spiced pepitas
Preheat oven to 400˚F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Cut squash into 4 large pieces, leaving skin on. Cut onion in half. Cut carrots into quarters. Remove heart (the tough part) of fennel bulb and cut fennel into quarters. Spread squash, carrots, onion, garlic and fennel on the baking sheet and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of oil. Sprinkle everything with 1/2 teaspoon sea salt. Bake at 400˚F for 45 minutes or until squash is fork tender and vegetables are cooked through and start to caramelize.
Meanwhile bring water, rice, remaining 1 tablespoon of oil and seasonings to a boil in a saucepan, then reduce to a simmer with lid cracked for 10 minutes until rice is cooked through. Remove thyme stems. Set broth aside until roasted vegetables are ready.
When vegetables are done roasting, remove them from the oven and scoop cooked squash out of it's skin, discarding the skin. Remove and discard the skin from garlic cloves. Transfer roasted vegetables to a blender along with the rice and broth. Blend everything together on high speed until creamy smooth. Return blended mixture to the saucepan and warm on low heat. If soup seems too thick, stir in another 1/2 cup of water. Taste for salt and add more to taste if needed.
Serve hot topped with a dollop of coconut milk or plain unsweetened non-dairy yogurt and maple spiced pepitas.
This soup will keep covered and refrigerated for several days, or frozen for up to 6 months. To reheat, bring to a simmer in a saucepan, adding a bit of water if too thick and/or more salt to taste if needed.
Maple Spiced Pepitas
1/4 cup raw shelled pumpkin seeds
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon maple syrup
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
pinch of sea salt
Preheat oven to 400˚F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Coat pumpkin seeds with oil, maple syrup and seasonings. Spread pumpkin seeds into baking sheet. Bake for 5-8 minutes, keeping a close eye on them so they don't burn. Pepitas are done when the puff up and turn dark golden brown and will be crunchy.
Guest Blogger: Fare Isle
Fare Isle originally started as a blog to share Kaity's passion and deep roots for the culinary world, from cooking, baking, and creating her own recipes to growing, foraging and discovering where her food comes from. At the time she was pregnant with her now 4 year old son, Iley, who was {and continues to be} the inspiration she needed to follow her passions and further the blog into a sustainable small business.
Fare Isle focuses on farm to table pantry items, botanical skin care and wellness products all made by hand 30 miles out sea on the island of Nantucket. Together with her love and Iley's papa, Jacob, they grow and wild-harvest many of the ingredients used in our culinary provisions, teas and herbs as well as their Vital healing botanical apothecary. If they can't grow or find something locally they then source from organic sustainable suppliers. Products are made in small batches, often to order, and are packaged in recycled glass jars and bottles with environmentally friendly labels printed in the US.
If you happen find yourself on this faraway island out to sea be sure to visit their seasonal market stand in downtown Nantucket every Saturday.