Butternut Squash and Black Bean Soup

Soup was ON for dinner tonight.  I've been totally obsessed with the combination of sweet winter vegetables (for example butternut squash and sweet potatoes) and black beans lately.  Remember my Chipotle-Glazed Sweet Potato and Black Bean Tacos?  Oh no?  Get into your kitchen and make them.  Now... just do it.

This soup is crazy-good.  It'll make you feel like snuggling up in a blanket in front of a roaring fire.  It is smokey and savory.  Oh, it's good.  And it's vegetarian and vegan (and even gluten-free if you leave off the crispy wonton strips).  I adapted the recipe just slightly from Sprouted Kitchen.  I added smoked paprika because I love the smokiness with black beans.  If you don't have smoked paprika, you could add a bit more ground cumin or some chipotle powder.

I didn't have tortillas for garnish so I used an open package of Nasoya wonton wrappers that I had in the fridge.  They worked like a charm, crisping up beautifully.  Use whatever you have, even some broken-up tortilla chips would work in a pinch.

Something else cool about the soup: it's inexpensive and quick to make.  How many more reasons could you possibly need?

So hurry up and make this soup before springtime.  Because when spring arrives, soup just doesn't have the same ring to it.

Since Brian has been working late the last few days, I was dining solo this evening so I decided to have two of my GFs, Joy and Tracy, join me (OK, so what if they don't know they're my GFs).  I listened to a couple of the Joy the Baker Podcasts while I ate dinner and it felt just like dinner with friends...except they did all the talking and I mostly just laughed along.

Butternut Squash and Black Bean Soup
serves 4-6

adapted from Sprouted Kitchen

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 medium sweet yellow onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 small head of cabbage, chopped (I used purple cabbage, you could use any variety at all)
3 cups cubed butternut squash (about 1'' chunks)
4 cups vegetable broth
2 level teaspoons cumin
1/2 teaspoon cocoa powder (I used dark)
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 (15.5 oz) can low sodium black beans, drained and rinsed
salt, to taste

For crispy wonton strips:
10-12 wonton wrappers (I use Nasoya wontons).  If you don't have wontons you can use 2 or 3 small flour or corn tortillas)
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
salt, to taste

For garnish:
avocado, chopped
cilantro
green onion, thinly sliced
crispy wonton strips

In a heavy pot or dutch oven over medium-high, heat 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil and add the chopped onion and saute until lightly browned, about 5 minutes.  Add garlic and saute another 1 minute, stirring.  Then, add the cabbage, squash and broth and bring soup to a boil.  Cover the pot with the lid and lower heat to a simmer.  Simmer 15-20 minutes or until the cabbage and butternut squash are nearly done.  Meanwhile, make the crispy wonton strips (see method below).

After the soup has cooked about 15-20 minutes, add the spices and beans to the pot and stir.  Cook soup another 5-10 minutes, taste and season with additional salt as necessary.  Then turn off the heat and using an immersion blender, pulse several times to puree the soup just slightly in order to thicken it, leaving some of the vegetables and beans intact.  (If you don't have an immersion blender, remove 1/4 -1/3 of the soup liquid and vegetables to a blender and puree.  Then return pureed portion back to the soup pot and stir.)

Serve soup warm topped with the chopped avocado, cilantro, green onion and crispy wonton strips.

To make the Crispy Wonton Strips:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with a sheet of aluminum foil and spray with a light mist of olive oil cooking spray.

Stack the wontons (or tortillas) on top of each other and slice into thin matchsticks.  Spread them out in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet.  Drizzle with 1 teaspoon of olive oil and sprinkle with salt.  Bake 8-10 minutes until light and crispy (if you use tortillas in stead of wontons, you may need to leave them in the oven for an additional 4-5 minutes).  Remove and season strips with additional salt, if necessary.  Use to garnish the soup.

What foods are you the MOST excited eating this Spring?

My favorites are strawberries and asparagus!  Love Spring Time!

Soup's On: Coconut Red Lentil Soup

Despite living in Florida where we've been enjoying daytime temperatures in the 60's (and 70's lately!) in January, I still find myself craving hearty soup for dinner this time of the year.  Maybe it's because many of the bloggers I follow live in colder areas of the country and I see them cooking up huge vats of piping hot soups and filling stews, photographing the snowy landscape outside their kitchen windows.

Soup, while very filling, tends to be on the healthier side of things as well.  I love to pair a big bowl of soup with a large salad, some bread and a glass of wine.  It's a delicious, filling and well-balanced meal that leaves me feeling satisfied without the guilt of a comfort-food splurge.

This recipe was exactly what I was looking for.  Sweet raisins, carrots and coconut milk make this soup feel truly indulgent.  Curry spices and fresh ginger bring warmth without adding any tongue-singing heat.  Split peas and lentils form the base of the soup, providing fiber and protein and are an excellent vegetarian source of folate and iron (not to mention they are absolutely delicious).

We ate the soup with a big green salad, some leftover cuban bread I had in the freezer (toasted and buttered - a little of the real thing goes a long way!) and a glass of Zinfandel from The Biltmore Winery, a bottle we picked up on our visit to Asheville last summer. Alternately, bulk-up this soup by serving it on top of a scoop of cooked brown rice, farro or barley.  Ideally, I would have served this soup with homemade 100% whole wheat bread but I had the cuban bread in the freezer and I'm not one to waste a tasty loaf of bread!

As for my substitutions and changes to the recipe:  Use yellow split peas if you can find them, I was unable to after looking at 4 different grocery stores so I just went with green split peas.  While I think the color of the soup would be a little prettier if with the yellow peas, we found the flavor was excellent with green peas so I didn't mind the muddled orange color it turned out.

I quickly pureed the soup after cooking with my (new) immersion blender, but left it partly-chunky.  You could go either way:  leave the soup chunky or it all the way smooth using a blender or immersion blender, it's just a matter of personal taste.

Adding a dollop of greek yogurt to the finished soup for serving was an addition of mine but we found it really enhanced the creaminess and overall experience.  It's optional but I recommend it!  A garnish of chopped cilantro would also be a delicious complement to the curry spices in the soup, but we were out.

Coconut Red Lentil Soup
serves 6
recipe adapted from 101 Cookbooks

1 cup green (or yellow) split peas
1 cup red lentils
7 cups water
1 medium carrot, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch dice
2 tablespoons fresh peeled and minced ginger
2 tablespoons curry powder
2 tablespoons butter
4 green onions, thinly chopped cross-wise
1/3 cup golden raisins
1/3 cup tomato paste
1 14-ounce can coconut milk
2 teaspoons fine sea salt

chopped cilantro, additional chopped green onions and 2% greek yogurt for serving (optional)

Rinse lentils and split peas well and place into a large soup pot.  Cover with the water and bring to a boil.    Reduce heat to a simmer, add the carrot and 1/2 tablespoon of the ginger.  Cover pot with the lid and simmer 30 minutes, or until the split peas are just soft.

Meanwhile, in a small dry saucepan over low heat, toast the curry powder until fragrant, being very careful not to burn it.  Transfer the toasted curry powder into a bowl and set aside, wipe out the inside of the sauce pan with a dry towel and return the pan to the stove over medium heat.  Melt butter to the (now empty) saucepan and add the four chopped green onions, the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons of ginger and the raisins.  Saute for 2 minutes, stirring frequently, then add the tomato paste and saute another 2-3 minutes stirring frequently.  Turn off the heat and stir the toasted curry powder into the tomato paste mixture, mixing well to combine.

Add the tomato paste-curry powder mixture to the simmering soup along with the coconut milk and the salt.  Simmer, uncovered, another 20 minutes or more.  The texture will thicken as the soup cooks so allow to cook for longer if you prefer thicker soup, or alternately add additional water to thin it out.  Optional:  puree soup using an immersion blender until desired consistency.

To serve:  ladle soup into bowls and top with a dollop of greek yogurt and a sprinkle of the remaining green onions and some chopped cilantro, if desired.

Question of the Day

What comfort foods do you crave during the winter time?  Do you find that your tastes and cravings change with the seasons?

I love soups and stews when the weather turns colder.  Oddly enough though, I love chili year 'round!  Root vegetables and starchy vegetables look so much more appealing when the fresh greens of summer are gone.  When the weather warms up I crave fresh berries and lots and lots of green leafy veggies.  My dinners turn lighter too - more fish and greens, less potatoes and roots.      

Changing the subject:  Tonight Brian and I are headed to our favorite restaurant in Tampa, The Refinery, for a 5-course Swamp Head Beer Dinner.  It was a Christmas gift to Brian from my sister Heidi and brother in law, Rob.  Soo excited and can't wait to share some highlights with you guys tomorrow!

White Bean Soup with Sausage and Kale...for my Sister

My sister Heidi came to town!  It was a quick, impromptu visit to Tampa planned only 2 or 3 days in advance and it came at just the right time!  With B still overseas and me being new to the area, it's been a lonely couple of weeks and I jumped at the chance to have some company.  And my sister is the best kind of company.


We had such a great time this weekend:  had dinner out at my favorite restaurant in town, shopped, enjoyed long philosophical discussions, watched sappy romantic comedies, laughed at silly jokes, savored decaf cappuccinos and live music at the local coffee shop, went to a wine tasting and of course cooked and ate delicious meals together at my house!


Heidi is an adventurer in the kitchen:  she talks of things like "mellow miso" and "massaging the kale."  She incorporates aspects of eating raw, vegan and gluten-free into her diet yet isn't limited to those foods, she just enjoys a balance of healthy, mindful eating as it fits into a broad wellness approach.  


We really enjoyed this White Bean Soup with Sausage and Kale which came together rather quickly, especially since I had cooked up the sausage the day or two before and had some nice homemade chicken stock ready to go for this exact purpose.  We thought the kale was excellent a little "al dente" right out of the soup pot on the first night but also enjoyed it with a slightly more wilted texture, reheated in the microwave the next day.   It's a hearty, healthy and filling soup and we hope you give it a try!





White Bean Soup with Sausage and Kale
serves 4-6
Adapted from My Kitchen Addiction


1/2 pound mild Italian sausage, casings removed
1 tablespoon olive oil (may not be necessary, depending on how much fat comes out of the sausage during cooking)
1/2 yellow onion, diced
2 ribs celery, diced
1 large carrot, peeled and diced
2 mushrooms, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
1 can canellini beans, drained and rinsed
4 cups chicken stock
1/2 large tomato, diced
1/2 large bunch kale, thick stems removed, roughly chopped
salt and pepper, to taste
parmesan cheese for serving (optional)


In a dutch oven or large heavy pot, brown sausage over medium-high heat, breaking up with the spatula, until fully cooked.  Remove sausage to a paper towel lined plate to drain.  Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to the same pot and lower heat to medium, add onion, celery, carrot and mushrooms to pot and saute 5-7 minutes stirring frequently, until vegetables have softened and onions start to become translucent (you may omit the olive oil in this step if there is fat left in the pot from cooking the sausage).  Add garlic and thyme and cook another 2 minutes, stirring frequently.  Add beans, chicken stock and tomato and increase heat to high to bring soup to a boil.  Once boiling, cover soup with lid and reduce heat to low to simmer for 10 minutes.  After 10 minutes, remove lid and increase heat to medium-low, add kale and continue to cook 5-10 minutes, until kale wilts to desired amount (we liked our kale barely wilted, about 4-5 minutes).  Season with salt and pepper to taste.


Ladle soup into bowls and serve, topped with shredded parmesan cheese if desired.