Butternut Squash Soup

By GratefulSea

This simple, creamy (but not cream-laden) butternut squash soup gets greater depth of flavor from sherry that is stirred in with the stock. If you’d rather not use sherry or don’t have it on hand, omit it and use an additional 1/2 cup of stock; your soup will be less complex, but it will still have that rich, sweet squash flavor.

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Ingredients

• 1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1-1/2 cups finely chopped onion
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 4-1/2 cups peeled butternut squash in 2-inch cubes (about 2 squashes)
• 4-1/2 cups water
• 1 cup well-flavored chicken or vegetable stock
• 1/2 cup medium-dry sherry
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Details

Servings 8
Cooking time 75mins
Adapted from cooking.nytimes.com

Preparation

Step 1

Heat the oil in a heavy four-quart saucepan. Add the onions, reduce heat to low, and saute slowly until they are tender but not brown. Stir in the garlic.

Add the squash and water, cover and simmer until the squash is tender, about 40 minutes. Allow the mixture to cool for about 15 minutes, then puree in two batches in a food processor. Up to this point the soup can be prepared in advance, even refrigerated or frozen.

Return the puree to the saucepan and add the stock and the sherry. Reheat and season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese on each portion.