Curried Butternut Squash-Sweet Potato Soup

Hi to everyone still hanging around here!! It's been so long since I've updated I wouldn't blame you at all if you've given up on me!! I do have several things to post about, I'm just having trouble finding the time to actually sit down, transfer pictures from camera to computer, then transfer to blogger, and finally write something interesting about them.

I just made this soup last night, so I guess I'll start with this. It comes from a recipe my mother in law sent over from Ireland, but I did change it slightly, which I hope added to the yumminess. The original recipe did not call for roasting of the squash and potatoes, but I opted to take the extra time and roast them first to intensify their flavors. I just love the taste of roasted butternut squash.

This recipe makes a HUGE batch of soup, and is very filling, so there will be tons of left over soup to freeze. I froze several single serving containers for Rob to take to lunch, and a few double batches to have on hand for quick dinners. Unfortunately the girls weren't big fans and ended up eating Light Life Smart Deli "Ham" sandwiches.

Curried Butternut Squash-Sweet Potato Soup

1 Tbs spoon Olive Oil (plus more for drizzling squash before roasting)

1 butternut squash (weighing a little less than 1 pound)

2 large sweet potatoes (again, a little less than 1 lb)

1 medium onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 Tbs curry powder

4 cups quality vegetable stock

9 oz plain soy creamer

torn basil leaves for garnish

Preheat oven to 425. Peel and dice butternut squash, place on baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil, toss to coat and roast about 25 minutes, until tender. In the meantime, roast sweet potatoes in their skins on same baking sheet. Remove from oven and cool until you can handle the potatoes.

Heat remaining Tbs olive oil over medium heat, add onion and garlic and cook until soft. Add curry powder and cook for another minute, until fragrant. Add sweet potatoes, squash and stock. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 10-15 minutes. Using a hand held blender or food processor, puree soup. Stir in soy cream and heat through. Ladle into serving bowls and top with basil leaves.

I served this soup with a big salad and some home made bread. I'm working on a good whole wheat sandwich bread, but I haven't quite perfected it yet. My girls eat a lot of bread and I hate to give them store bought bread. There are only a few brands that I can buy that haven't been processed on a line with peanuts, and some of those brands don't have the best ingredients in it. So, I've set out on a quest to make my own. I've gotten quite good at specialty breads (thanks to Vegan Dad), but my kids really like their sandwiches on that chewy, airy and not at all crumbly store bought stuff. As of now it's not completely whole wheat because I can't find any whole wheat bread flour. Right now we stand at about 2 parts whole wheat flour to one part unbleached bread flour, but as soon as I find some whole wheat bread flour I hope to have a recipe for 100% whole wheat sandwich bread.

Sweet and Savory Lentils

Agave Baked Lentils:

2 cups Puy Lentil (you could use any kind of lentils, but I prefer the french lentils, they seem to hold their shape and not become mushy)

4 cups water

1 Bay Leaf

1 vegetable bouillon cube

1 large carrot, diced

2 celery stalks, diced

1 small onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup agave nectar (or substitute honey if you like)

1 tsp nutmeg

2 Tbs extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375. In sauce pot add 4 cups of water with 2 cups Puy lentils, vegetable bouillon cube, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 30 minutes. After 30 minute remove lentils from heat and set aside. In a 9x12 baking dish combine carrots, celery, onions and garlic with agave, nutmeg, EVOO and salt and pepper. Stir to combine. Then, pour lentils with their cooking liquid into baking dish. Stir to incorporate vegetables. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 1 hour. After 1 hour remove foil and bake about 10 more minutes to evaporate some of the liquid.

I baked the sweet potatoes at the same time the lentils were baking, when they were done I cut them in half, scooped out the flesh and mashed it with a few Tbs of soy milk and 1 Tbs of brown sugar.