Butternutter

I enjoy the sunny, golden warmth of winter squash soup. I like it with sour cream and pear, like the one I tasted at the Kona Cafe in Cleveland, OH; I like it with roasted garlic, like the one my cousin made for her birthday; I like it with apple; I like it with fried sage leaves; I just got a recipe full of pear, pumpkin and butter that I have to try. I'll probably be tired of it by the end of the year, but for now, I'm totally digging its thick, smooth pap texture and filling warmth.

And even though it's been crazy warm here (68 degrees, wutt wutt?), I wanted to imbue the soup with even more heat, the kind of warmth that radiates from the inside out. I came up with this recipe, which I was going to make for a Thanksgiving amuse, served in shot glasses. Ginger is one of my favorite flavors for winter because of its vaporub-on-the-inside qualities. Cardamom is the spice that gives chai its distinctive peppery heat. I ground up the black seeds from green cardamom pods, but you can just as easily use pre-ground cardamom. If you don't have garam masala on hand, make your own with whatever blend of spices you have.

Butternut squash soup with ginger and cardamom

Olive oil or butter
1 large leek, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 3 inch hunk of ginger, peeled and minced
2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 small apple, peeled and chopped
1 pear, peeled and chopped
1 medium butternut squash (about the size of a 1L water bottle), peeled and cubed
Chicken/Vegetable broth (about 4 cups?)
Salt
1/4 tsp. ground cardamom
1/2 tsp. garam masala
1-2 tsp. lemon juice to taste
1/2 c. heavy cream

Possible garnishes:
Tiny pear brunoise
Créme fraiche or sour cream
Minced cilantro
toasted spiced pumpkin seeds or pecans

Sweat the leeks and onions in the olive oil over medium heat for a few minutes til translucent. Add garlic and ginger, saute for a minute. Add carrots, celery, apple and pear and sweat for a few more minutes. Add butternut squash and cover with chicken broth (you may need more or less chicken broth depending on how big your squash is. Also, don't add salt until after you've cooked everything down.)

Cook it down over medium low heat til the vegs are very tender, about 30 minutes. Add cardamom, garam masala, with lemon juice and salt to taste. Remove from heat. Puree with a hand blender or in an upright blender til smooth. The flavor should be bright and warm with cardamom. Add your cream and blend a little more. Serve piping hot with your choice of garnishes.