Slow Cooker Thai-Inspired Butternut Squash and Peanut Vegan Soup with Red Bell Pepper, LIme, and Cilantro

By 1buttons

Makes about 8 servings; recipe adapted from a soup recipe we spotted in Cooking Light, but we changed it quite a bit.)Equipment:
You need about a 5-Quart Slow Cooker for this recipe, although it can be slightly smaller.

Ingredients

• Ingredients:
• 2 lbs. peeled and cubed butternut squash
• 1 cup vegetable stock (vegetable broth in a can is fine)
• salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
• 2 tsp. olive oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 tsp. minced garlic (minced garlic from a jar is fine)
• 1 tsp. minced ginger root (pureed ginger from a jar is fine)
• 1 red bell pepper, seeds removed and finely chopped
• 1 can (14 oz.) light Thai Coconut Milk
• 2 T Thai Red Curry Paste
• 1/2 cup natural peanut butter (without added sugar)
• 1 T brown sugar, Stevia in the Raw granulated sweetener, or Splenda (use Stevia or Splenda for South Beach Diet)
• 2 tsp. Fish Sauce
• 2 T fresh-squeezed lime juice
• 1/3 cup finely chopped cilantro

Preparation

Step 1

Instructions:
Peel the butternut squash and cut into cubes if you're starting with a whole squash. (Here's How to Peel and Cut Up a Butternut Squash if you haven't done it.) Put the squash cubes and vegetable stock into the slow cooker, season squash generously with salt and fresh-ground black pepper, and cook on high for 2 hours, or until the squash is soft enough to mash easily. When it's soft, use a food processor, blender, or Immersion Blender to puree the squash, being careful with the hot food.

Heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan, add onion and saute until well-browned, about 8 mimore. Then add the coconut milk, Thai Red Curry Paste, and peanut butter and heat just until the curry paste and peanut butter is melted into the coconut milk. Add the sweetener and fish sauce.

Stir the coconut milk mixture into the pureed squash, turn slow cooker to low and cook for 1 hour more. Stir in the chopped cilantro and fresh lime juice and cook about 15 minutes more. Serve hot, garnished with more chopped cilantro and chopped peanuts if desired. If you'd like more heat, shake in a little Sriracha Sauce.

I am assuming this freezes well. (I have some in the freezer but haven't thawed it yet.)