Butternut Squash Soup with Variations

 I had often enjoyed butternut squash soup at restaurants, but never made it myself.  Then one day I overbaked a squash and it turned out too soft for the recipe I had planned.  I decided to try making soup, and looked at several recipes online, but they all called for cream or coconut milk.  At last, I just made my own recipe.  I made a plain recipe without any seasoning, and then tried different seasoning to see which I liked best. In the end there were several that were quite good.

Basic Soup

1 large (ish) butternut squash
1 cup (more or less) of plain soy milk
1 chopped small onion (about 3/4 cup)
2 tsp minced garlic (about 2 cloves)

Salt and/or pepper to taste

Cut the stem off of the squash, and then split it in half lengthwise.  Remove the seeds.  Place it on a baking pan, and cover with aluminum foil.  Bake at 350 degrees for 1 1/4 hour. (I usually put it in the oven early and set my oven to time bake)

About 15 minutes before it is done, chop the onion and the garlic (I use pre-chopped garlic from a jar because it is less sharp). Sauté the onion and garlic until the onion is wilted and soft. 

I have taken to leaving the seasonings
on the table so people can choose.

When the butternut squash is quite soft, remove it from the oven, scoop out the flesh, and discard the skin.  Put the squash it in a blender with the onions, garlic, and soy milk. Blend until the mixture is smooth adjusting the amount of soy milk to make a thick soup. Add one of the following seasonings, or try your own.

Adobo Butternut Soup

Add 1-2 tsp of Adobo seasoning during the blending.

Garam Masala Butternut Soup

Add 1 tsp or more of Garam Masala to the soup during the blending, plus a dash of lemon or lime juice.

Apple Harvest Butternut Soup 

Core and peal one apple, and cut into small pieces.  Add the apple in the skillet when you are sautéing the onion. Add 1/2 tsp turmeric and 1/4 tsp cinnamon during blending. 

Butternut Curry Soup

Add 1/2 tsp turmeric, plus 1 curry cube, or 2 tsp of your favorite curry powder.  If you want, add 1 Tbsp coconut oil during the blending to give it the coconut flavor.