Butternut Squash Soup

With the new year come new year's resolutions.  Jeremy and I are trying to get the gym regularly, eat healthier, and get into good shape.  We're not bad... but we could do better.  With my cooking, I'm trying to use more fish and veggies throughout the year.  We eat a lot of veggies, but I want to vary the types we eat more.  So, to that end, I bought butternut squash last time we went to the grocery store.

I decided to make a soup out of it because it's a fairly healthy and filling preparation.  I served this with a spinach salad (woo more veggies!).  I like spinach better than lettuce so I'd rather have that in a salad.  Overall this was a very easy meal to whip up and it was very tasty.  I will certainly be making this again.

This made a huge pot of soup.  I'm going to freeze some of it so that we can have some later and don't have to eat this for every meal for the next couple of days.  Overall this is a very easy and delicious soup. It was somewhat creamy (without any dairy at all!).  And since this was made with water it's vegetarian.  I debated whether to use water or chicken stock when making it and decided on the water.  It was plenty flavorful so I'm glad I used water.

If you've never cooked with leeks, it's important to clean them properly because they're grown in sandy soil.  Start by cutting off the roots and the green, tough leaves (they're not good for eating). Slice the remaining leek in half and then cut into half moons.  Fill a large bowl with water and separate the leeks into the bowl.  Swish them around a bit to clean them and allow them to sit for a minute so the grit falls to the bottom of the bowl.  Remove the leeks to a paper towel and then cook!

Recipe:
1 butternut squash (mine was 3.5 lbs), peeled, seeded, and diced (I used a spoon to scoop out the seeds)
3 leeks, greens removed, sliced thinly and cleaned
2 small granny smith apples, cored and diced (about 1 cup diced)
7 c. water
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. dried thyme leaves
1/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
1 tbs. olive oil
1 tbs. margarine

1. Heat a large soup pot over medium heat.  Add olive oil and margarine.  When margarine is melted, add leeks. Saute for 5-7 minutes until tender.
2. Add squash, apple, thyme, and enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer.  Simmer for 20-25 minutes until the squash and apples are tender enough to squish on the side of the pot.
3. Blend the soup in batches, transferring to a clean bowl until everything has been blended.
4. Return soup to the pot and add salt, pepper, cayenne, and nutmeg.
5. Serve and enjoy.