Thinking outside the box brings forth comforting Curried Acorn Squash Soup

Acorn squash—just so many things you can cook with it, right? For years Hubby has done a great job of sawing those large green orbs in two, dotting them with butter and brown sugar, and baking them on trays in the oven—then scooping out the sweet, tender insides for us to enjoy.

But when I saw a recipe for Curried Acorn Squash Soup, I was intrigued. A new twist on the baked variety—seasoned with curry and nutmeg, then topped with bacon bits. Had to try, had to try.

The recipe book’s comment on this soup (source: Taste of Home Thanksgiving Recipe Cards again) mentioned that this dish was easy to make and that it kept well. All true. The smooth, unique combination of the squash and the spices was delightful. This would make a great first course for a sit-down Christmas dinner. For us it became a wonderfully warming treat on the night this week that the winter storm blew in and the frightful-sounding gales outside made indoors around our kitchen table a comforting place to be.

Thinking out of the box for you, acorn squash! You do yourself proud in this mellow, interesting soup.

Curried Acorn Squash Soup

3 medium acorn squash, halved and seeded

1/2 cup chopped onion

3 to 4 teaspoons curry powder

2 tablespoons butter

3 cups chicken brown (I used low-sodium variety)

1 cup half-and-half cream (can use whole milk, 2 percent, or skim)

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

salt (or salt substitute) and pepper to taste

crumbled cooked bacon (I used turkey bacon bits)

Place squash, cut side down, in a greased, shallow baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes or until the squash is almost tender. In a large saucepan sauté onion and curry powder in butter until onion is tender. Remove from the heat; set aside. Carefully scoop out squash; add pulp to saucepan. Gradually add the broth. Cook over medium heat for 15-20 minutes or until squash is very tender. Cool slightly. In a food processor or blender process the squash mixture until smooth; return to the saucepan. Stir in the cream, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Cook over low heat until heated through (do not boil). Garnish with bacon if desired. Makes 4-6 servings.

Broccoli, celery, et al. keep winter-soup recipe file expanding

We are in a soup rut, but it's a good soup rut. Frozen temps, closed-down city, traffic at a snail's crawl on the roads—yesterday was Snow Storm Redux in our town, as it was in many other places as well. Fresh broccoli was in the fridge and needed to make its way into something healthy.

Any more, however, we also don't make light of the prosaic stalk of celery and its health benefits as well. Hubby recently read about how celery is super for its ability to drive down blood pressure. Since managing the BP sometimes is a challenge for him, he's started adding celery wherever possible—even into his famous smoothies! (Doesn't taste bad at all; surrounded by so much fruit and yogurt and nuts, it's hardly recognizable in a smoothie drink.) Celery's apparent cancer-fighting properties boost its popularity as a health-filled add-in.

So with broccoli, celery, corn kernels, and onion on hand, we were ready to roll. No reduced-sodium chicken broth on the pantry shelf, so I simply covered some uncooked chicken breasts in a pan of water and let them boil for 20-25 minutes until the breasts no longer were pink and I had a nice supply of fresh broth ready for my soup. Much better choice than the canned broth (even the lowered-sodium kind) anyway. Plus now I have some cooked chicken bits reserved when I need them for a casserole.

To make a long story short, we had another wonderful soup night. Adding the Cheddar cheese to the thickened soup base made it creamy, cheesy, and great.

Texas may never again have another Arctic season like this one has been, but next year if we spend a lot of time fraternizing with snowflakes, as least my healthy soup-recipe file will be ready.

Creamy Broccoli Soup

3 cups fresh broccoli, chopped

1/2 cup celery, diced

1/2 cup onion, diced

1/2 cup fresh corn kernels

2 cups chicken broth, reduced sodium (or make your own)

4 cups skim milk

1/4 cup cornstarch

pinch salt (or salt substitute)

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 cup Cheddar cheese, reduced fat, shredded

cayenne pepper to taste

In a large sauce pan place vegetables and broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until vegetables are tender. In a small bowl mix milk, cornstarch, salt, and pepper. Add milk mixture to vegetables and heat on medium high heat. Stir until soup is lightly thickened and begins to boil. Remove from heat. Add cheese and stir until melted. Add cayenne if desired. Makes 6 1-cup servings.