Name: Roasted Squash and Apple Soup
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 65 min
Ingredients: 1 acorn or kabocha squash (mine weighed 2 lbs); 1 butternut squash (mine weighed 2 lbs); 2 apples (peeled, halved and seeds removed (I used one fuji and one Granny Smith)); 2 cups unsweetened almond milk (you can also sub stock instead); 2 cups stock or water (I used chicken stock); salt (to taste); 1 dash or two of freshly grated nutmeg; 1/2 tsp or to taste no-salt seasoning; olive oil or nonstick cooking spray; Sunflower seeds for topping (optional)

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Roasted Squash and Apple Soup

Squash-based soups can be one-dimensional and boring. Next time, throw roasted apples into the mix for a light and bright note on a classic winter soup.

While packing for our trip to Hawaii in early January, I caught my husband with a puzzled look on his face as I threw a few miso soup packets into my suitcase.

“You’re taking soup with you to Hawaii?” he asked.

“Of course.” I replied. As if packing soup for a trip to a tropical island were the most normal thing in the world.

By now he’s grown accustomed to me taking certain things on our trips to make me feel more at home. When we retired my old suitcase recently he found a bag of assorted black and herbal teas in one of the pockets. My husband understands this since he knows I enjoy my tea ritual each morning and prefer to drink my favorite brand rather than what some hotels offer. He knows my love for soup, too, but apparently the idea of adding it to my “comfort list”–and for Hawaii no less–still needs some getting used to.

But here’s the thing: some days all I want is a bowl of soup and when I’m away from home I like to be prepared. Even with several markets and countless restaurants around us, it was extra convenient to be able to pull the packets out of the cabinet when the soup craving hit…and my husband even enjoyed a cup or two with me.

I mentioned all this to help express how delighted I was that soup–along with stews–earned a feature with my Blogger C.L.U.E. group. I was assigned to Anna of Anna Dishes this month. I’ve had the pleasure of being assigned to Anna’s blog before and I was pleased to find another recipe that I was keen to try.

My husband and I have been on a squash kick lately. It has been such a staple for us this winter that even during our three week visit to Hawaii squash made it into the dinner rotation a few times. I’ve been preparing our favorite, kabocha squash, simply roasted or par-cooked and sautéed with other vegetables Asian style, so coming across Anna’s Roasted Squash and Apple Soup was a welcome new way to enjoy it. I’d always been curious about adding apple to a classic squash soup and I was very pleased with the results.

Squash-based soups can taste one-dimensional and boring but throwing roasted apples into the mix adds a light and bright note to a classic preparation. The use of unsweetened almond milk works well here but feel free to use stock or a combination of both. I had to make minor adjustments to Anna’s original recipe to keep the soup appealing for my husband and it was still a winner. It was thick and heartwarming without being cloyingly sweet as some squash soups can tend to be. The apple really does add such a brightness to each bite that I wouldn’t consider preparing squash soup again without it.

Thanks for another winner, Anna. Now I’m eyeing a couple more squash recipes in your archives.

Scroll down below the recipe for more soups and stews for this month’s Blogger C.L.U.E.