Thursday, November 10, 2011

Spicy Squash, Fennel & Pear Soup


Spicy Squash, Fennel & Pear Soup

There is no cold weather dish more ubiquitous than squash soup.  So I was not overly enthusiastic about this week's French Friday with Dorie challenge:  Spicy Squash, Fennel and Pear Soup.  But I was surprised to discover this recipe is pure holiday cheer in a bowl.  It is quick and simple to make, and way better than TJ's soup in a box.  I recommend this soup as a winter first course or, with proper accoutrements, an afternoon's entree.

Ingredients at the ready 

The ingredients establish a festive mood.  The orange squash is the color of Thanksgiving; the fennel adds a distinct licorice aroma reminiscent of hot spiced rum; and who can forget the importance of the pear in the Twelves Days of Christmas?  The roasted squash, fennel and smooth and succulent pears all add an elegant touch to the basic butternut squash soup.  The recipe calls for a large Spanish onion and a green onion or scallion.  Since I had all three on hand, I decided to use them all and kick up the onion contribution a bit.  This combination worked really well in adding a rounded onion profile to the soup.  In addition to the ground ginger, I had a little fresh ginger on hand and added both to a  touch of ground cumin and nutmeg.  Before I knew it, I was throatily singing Christmas carols and became eager to Deck the Halls with something or other.  But the real difference maker was the orange zest.  The fragrant zest of the orange is like a tango of orange blossoms dancing across your palate with a little kick of ginger to keep the dance going.

Onion, Celery & Fennel base

Roasted squash ready for peeling and dicing

Diced squash ready to go into soup base

For the health and calorie conscious, this soup has no cream.  It is made strictly from the vegetables, fruit and stock.  This is a real plus for those who have dairy allergies or are lactose intolerant.
All ingredients are in dutch oven and waiting for stock

Stock is added and soup is brought to slow boil

I love my immersion blender - soup in minutes and no mess of transferring to a blender

We garnished with creme fraiche, roasted pumpkin seeds and a squeeze of lemon that really brightened the flavors of the soup.  It's a gorgeous, velvety, luscious soup that, when paired with the previous weeks' 20 minute duck and the pumpkin stuffed with everything good might be my go-to meal this holiday entertaining season!

Go to www.frenchfridayswithdorie.com to read more experiences with this recipe from my fellow Dorista's.

The pumpkin seeds and creme fraiche add great contrast in texture to the soup

A perfect autumn afternoon in the desert









11 comments:

  1. I'm impressed by your process photos! Great post!

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  2. Funny that you were singing Christmas carols! I'm not ready for winter. We were in the upper 60's all week ... until last night = snow. I'm okay with the winter soup, but not so much winter.

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  3. "The fragrant zest of the orange is like a tango of orange blossoms dancing across your palate with a little kick of ginger to keep the dance going." What a great sentence! You describe the soup beautifully. I enjoyed making and eating this soup. It is just perfect for a cold day.

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  4. I love your post. The descriptions of the soup and its flavors are so vivid. You are right, the ingredients are Christmasy. This soup will stay on the menu at my house throughout the season!

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  5. Beautiful photos! Your soup looks and sounds delicious! The ingredients are very apropos for the holidays!

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  6. Happy Birthday!
    Glad you enjoyed - this one certainly is very seasonal. Loved the addition of the pumpkin seeds.

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  7. Love it, squash soup by the pool! Looks delicious.

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  8. What a great post! I'm catching up and did this soup too. You are so happy and positive and bring holiday cheer with this post. I was a little tired and a bit down from dealing with hard things this week...your post is the one I should have written and I'm so glad I read it.

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  9. I love my immersion blender too - definitely one of my better kitchen purchases :-) I love the photo of the soup and wine by the pool! What a great afternoon...

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  10. Great post - I was surprised at how different this soup is from the average squash soup. Very worthy of repeating.

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  11. This has been my favorite recipe so far for all the reasons you cited: spices, fragrance, pears, orange zest. Just delightful. And I too am so grateful for my immersion blender. Love that you topped it with the toasted pumpkin seeds - they are a great snack, but I didn't have any one hand!

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