Roasted Butternut Squash & Apple-Ginger Soup

Posted on February 24, 2014 by Aprons & Stilettos

We finally received some much needed rain here in Northern California a few weeks back. For a minute there, I forgot it was winter with all of the beautiful, warm days we’ve experienced in December and January.

It was a Friday night and I had planned for my dear friend Morgan to come over and make dinner together. That morning over text we both had same idea for dinner: SOUP! What a perfect choice to pair with this rainy evening. She had a few ideas that we kicked around and then we both settled on making a comforting squash soup with granny smith apples paired with a pear & pomegranate salad.

1 large butternut squash
1 yellow onion, quartered
2 1/2 cups vegetable or chicken broth
3 granny smith apples, peeled & cored
3 garlic cloves, grated
1/2 cup half & half
1 tablespoon fresh Thyme
1 teaspoon ground ginger
Olive oil
Salt & pepper, to taste
1 granny smith apple, for garnish

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Quarter the butternut squash, coat with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for about 45 minutes – 1 hour. Remove the skin and let cool. (If your local store doesn’t have whole butternut squash available, check to see if they have cubed butternut squash.)

Add the apples and 2 cups of broth into a blender or food processor (I used my Ninja and it worked great!) Puree until smooth and transfer it to a bowl. Set aside. In a heavy stockpot, add olive oil, onions and garlic and saute over medium heat until softened, about 5-7 minutes. Remove the onions from pot and place in a bowl. Transfer the apple / broth mixture to the stock pot and simmer. Add the cooled squash to the blender along with 1/2 cup of broth and puree until smooth. Add the squash puree to the apple / broth mixture. Add the half & half and stir continuously until completely mixed together. Add the fresh thyme and ginger. Season with salt & pepper, to taste.

Garnish soup with thin slices of apples & fresh thyme sprig. Enjoy with your favorite salad or crusty bread.

Serves 4 -6

Pear, Pomegranate & Gorgonzola Salad

Arugula salad
1 – 2 ripe pears, sliced
Gorgonzola, crumbled
Pomegranate seeds (click here to learn an easy way to deseed a pomegranate)
Walnuts, toasted
Citrus vinaigrette (recipe below)

Combine pears, cheese, pomegranates and toasted walnuts over a bed of arugula salad. To make this simple vinaigrette, combine juice from 1 orange, 1/2 tablespoon white wine vinegar, 1/4 cup olive oil (slowly added), salt & pepper.

Enjoy! ~Crystal

Roasted Butternut Squash, Garlic & Rosemary Lasagna

Posted on November 25, 2013 by Aprons & Stilettos

Butternut Squash Lasagna

The fall season calls for deliciously irresistible winter squash and butternut squash is one of my all-time favorites. Last night I had the opportunity to hang out with Chef Don Garrett from Wine Country Artisans Catering who made an AMAZING homemade butternut squash ravioli. These raviolis were hands down the BEST butternut squash raviolis I’ve ever tasted (perhaps we will have a blog post soon and Don will share with us his recipe!) Nevertheless, as I was eating his leftovers this afternoon for lunch, I got inspired to whip up something tonight for dinner that incorporated this wonderful autumn squash. In the past, I’ve made butternut squash soup, roasted squash with thyme and butternut squash risotto… hmmmm, I have lasagna pasta sheets – let’s make lasagna! I haven’t made lasagna in a long, long time so this was the perfect dish to make. Not only is this dish comforting — a perfect pair to the cooler weather — but it’s easy to make.

Prepping Lasagna

2 1/2 cups fresh butternut squash, seeded, peeled, and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
olive oil
2 – 3 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 – 2 cups milk
2 teaspoons fresh rosemary, chopped
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups freshly grated Parmesan
2 tablespoons butter
No-boil lasagna pasta
1/2 cup heavy cream
salt & pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. In a large bowl, toss fresh butternut squash pieces with olive oil and lightly season with salt. Roast for 10 minutes. Stir butternut squash and roast for another 10 – 15, until tender and golden.

While squash is roasting, melt butter in a large saucepans. Add garlic and cook over medium heat until fragrant (1 minute). Stir in flour and cook roux, stirring for about 2-3 minutes. Slowly add milk, rosemary, salt and pepper. Cook and stir frequently until thickened yet smooth – about 5 – 8 minutes. Stir in roasted squash.

Butter a casserole dish and pour some sauce on the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Begin layering the lasagna pasta sheets. Spread the sauce on top of the noodles and sprinkle freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Repeat layering noodles, adding the sauce and finishing with Parmesan cheese. Pour heavy whipping cream over the top of the entire dish and sprinkle a little more cheese. Cover dish tightly with foil and bake in the middle of the oven for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 10 minutes, or until the top is bubbling and golden brown. Allow dish to cool for about 5 minutes. Garnish with rosemary sprigs.

Serves 4 – 6.

Wine Pairing? Try pairing this decadent dish with a rich & buttery Chardonnay. Do you have a personal favorite? Share with us in the comments below or on twitter!

Enjoy! ~Crystal

What are your favorite fall dishes? Share with us on Twitter @ApronsStilettos

Coconut Milk & Poached Salmon Soup with Blood Orange Salad

Posted on September 13, 2013 by Aprons & Stilettos

Morgan and I were laying out by the pool, enjoying the 90+ degree weather and a glass of Kunde Sauvignon Blanc when we decided to make soup for dinner. Soup?! On such a hot day. Yes. I love soup, even during the warmer months, but I don’t experiment enough with making them. It was settled then. Soup it was.

Ingredients for Salmon Soup

We both love Thai cuisine and decided to integrate similar ingredients used in Thai cooking to build our Coconut Milk & Poached Salmon Soup. And what better way to brighten up the strong aromatic & spicy components of our soup than with a delicate blood orange salad.

We rushed off to Oliver’s to pick up the essentials.

Coconut Milk & Poached Salmon Soup

1 Wild Pacific Alaskan Salmon, Filet – middle piece
3 cups vegetable stock
1/2 white onion
2 garlic cloves
1 stalk lemongrass, snapped in half
Ginger, sliced (about 12 rounds)
2 (13 fl. oz) cans coconut milk
3 chilies, chopped (we used two Jalapeño & 1 Fresno pepper)
Fish sauce, few dashes
2 bay leaves
1 lime, juiced
5 – 7 springs cilantro
Salt, to taste

Salmon for Coconut Soup

Combine stock, 1/2 onion (whole – not sliced), garlic, lemongrass and ginger in a pot and bring to a boil then simmer for 10 minutes. Add coconut milk, chilies, fish sauce, and bay leaves and simmer for another 10 minutes. Strain and return the broth to the stove. Cut the raw salmon filets into small chunks, add to the broth and simmer for an additional 10 minutes. Once the salmon is cooked thoroughly, add in juice from one lime, cilantro and salt. Serve immediately with blood orange salad and vino of your choice.

We were out of the Sauvignon Blanc so we enjoyed a glass of Rosé with our dinner which paired great with the spicy kick in our soup. Don’t have bottle of Rosé or Sauvignon Blanc? Pinot Gris or Gewürztraminer would also be a fine match.

Blood Orange Salad

Arugula
2 blood oranges, sliced
Small bag of sliced almonds
1/2 red onion, sliced

Citrus Vinaigrette

1 blood orange, juiced
Olive oil, heavy drizzle
Red wine vinegar, few dashes
1 tablespoon honey
Salt and pepper, to taste

Blood Oranges for Salad

Combine all citrus vinaigrette ingredients and set aside. Cut the skins off of the blood orange and slice orange wedges for salad. Combine oranges with arugula, onions and almonds and toss with citrus vinaigrette.

Serves 3-4

~Enjoy, Crystal