Butternut Squash Soup with Cinnamon Sugar Croutons

Take two medium shallots … [Side note: Aaron and I have been looking for a new cutting board for the past year because, as you can tell, our existing cutting board is about to give up the ghost.  We want one that is at least 36 inches across and 24 inches wide, dark walnut color, no juice grooves, a flat edge (not rounded downward).  The size is bigger than normal because we want to be able to use it for huge family dinners when we are cooking for a lot of people.  We haven’t been able to find it, yet.  If any of you know a vendor who has one for sale, let us know if you don’t mind.  Alright.  Back to the butternut squash soup.]

… and dice them.

Take a butternut squash and cut it open lengthwise.  Be careful and don’t hurt yourself because if you do it wrong, you can get seriously injured.

Scoop out the seeds and fibers of the butternut squash into a separate cup or bowl.  You’ll need them in a moment.

Cut the butternut squash itself into smaller pieces, then weigh out roughly 3 pounds of the vegetable (or more, if you want more flavor).

Using a dutch oven or large pan with lid, melt 4 tablespoons of butter over medium-low heat until it foams.

Throw in the diced shallots you prepared, stirring them for roughly 3 minutes as they cook.  You want them to largely lose their color and become clear but not turn brown.

Add the butternut squash seeds and fibers you have set aside.  tir occasionally until, in the words of the original recipe, it becomes “fragrant and butter turns saffron color”, which will take about 4 minutes.

When that is done, add six cups of water and 1.5 tablespoons of salt.  Crank up the heat to high and bring it to a boil.  This is going to be your soup base.

Once that soup base is boiling, using a strainer or steaming basket, put the butternut squash (soft side down) over the steam, not actually touching the liquid.

Reduce heat to medium-low and put a lid on it.  Let the steam cook the squash until it is soft, which will take around 30 minutes, while simultaneously concentrating the soup base, which is being boiled away.

While the butternut squash is being steamed and the soup base concentrated, break out four pieces of sturdier white bread.  We used English muffin bread.

Melt two tablespoons of butter …

… cut the bread up into cubes and drench it in the melted butter.

Mix 4 teaspoons of white sugar and 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon to sprinkle over the buttered bread.

Toss the bread with the cinnamon and sugar so it gets coated as much as possible.

Spread the cinnamon sugar croutons out on a baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes in an oven preheated at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  When they are done, put them in a container.  You will be sprinkling them on top of the butternut squash soup right before serving every time a dish is portioned out to someone.

Once your butternut squash is steamed, use tongs to move the pieces from the steaming basket to a baking sheet. Let them cool enough that you won’t burn yourself when handling them.

Using a spoon, scrape out as much of the vegetable as you can without getting into the rind.  You’re going to throw the rind away and put the butternut squash scrapings into a separate bowl.

Back at the stove, you need to use your strainer to remove any solids from the soup base, which has reduced from all of the boiling.

Press down on the solids for good measure to remove any liquid … You can discard them when you are done.

You’re left with the butternut squash soup base!  You’re almost done!

Take your butternut squash soup base and the butternut squash scrapings and put them next to a blender or food processor.  I normally use a MagiMix food processor, which I love and was a wedding gift from my brother, but Aaron was cooking an Asian stir-fry from scratch at the same time I was starting this dish so I had to use a backup as he was making a pepper and vegetable mixture.  Anything should work if it can produce a puree.

Dump in some butternut squash scrapings and ladle in some soup base liquid.  Pulse.  You want it to turn into a smooth puree.

Pour the finished puree into a separate bowl or cup.  Continue until all of the butternut squash scrapings are used, which should take 2-3 batches total in the blender if it’s a standard size and you are filling only 1/3rd to 1/2 way up each time for safety.  Most of the soup base won’t be used, which is fine because …

… you need to dump all of that pureed butternut squash mixture back into the soup base itself, stirring and mixing well so it all becomes a smooth consistency.

Put the entire thing back on the stove.  Stir in 1/2 cup of heavy cream and 1 teaspoon dark brown sugar to sweeten and enrich the butternut squash soup.

Turn the heat to medium-low, warming up the finished butternut squash soup to a temperature you’d want if it were served in a restaurant.  Be careful not to let it boil now that there is heavy cream in it.  Once it’s warm enough for your liking, add salt to taste and bring out the other flavors.

Turn off the heat.  Dish out the finished butternut squash soup, sprinkling the cinnamon sugar croutons on top right before it is eaten so they remain crunchy.

The true test was getting out the pot (I had transferred the leftovers to a smaller pot so it would more easily fit in the refrigerator) and reheating the soup the next day.

… I wasn’t sure how it was going to turn out but the croutons held, beautifully, too.

Victory! It was as good, if not a little better, than the day it was made. That’s what you want in a great soup.