Butternut Squash Soup
The secret to great butternut squash soup is steaming the flesh and
then using the seeds to add flavor.
By Raquel Pelzel
With its brash orange color, luxurious texture, and unapologetic
squash flavor, butternut squash soup should be anything but meek.
Unfortunately, many recipes bury the bold flavor of the butternut
squash beneath chicken stock, an excess of cream or milk, or an
overabundance of spices. The consistency of the soup is another
problem, with some being too thin and others too thick, like a
porridge. I set out to preserve the natural flavor of the squash while
transforming it into a silky smooth soup.
The first step is to cook the squash. In the recipes I reviewed for
this article, three methods prevailed: simmering, sauteing, and
roasting. When simmering or sauteing the squash, the first step is to
remove its tough, outer skin. Then the flesh must be cut into
manageable pieces. After pureeing, the sauteed squash tasted gritty,
and although the simmered squash had a smooth, satiny mouthfeel, I
concluded that all the peeling and chopping was too much work.
Infinitely simpler than simmering or sauteing is oven-roasting, for
which the skin can be left intact. I rubbed the squash with oil and
placed it in a hot oven. The roasting moved at a snail's pace, but it
was easy to slip the squash meat away from the shell.
Happy with the simplicity of roasting, I pureed the squash with water.
To my surprise, the puree was mealy and caramel-flavored. I gave
roasting another chance, this time pureeing the squash with chicken
broth in one batch and milk in a second batch. The chicken broth
interfered with the flavor of the squash, while the milk made the
puree taste like melted squash ice cream.
My testing had reached a dead end. Simmering the squash did it more
justice than sauteing or roasting, but that meant peeling and cutting.
Thinking that moist heat might be the key, I decided to try steaming.
I placed cut, seeded, unpeeled squash in a steamer basket, lowered the
basket into a 6-quart Dutch oven, covered the pot, and let the squash
steam until tender. Not only did the squash cook in a mere half-hour,
but the cooking liquid was perfumed with the squash's essence. After
pureeing the squash with some of the cooking liquid, I found it
neither mealy nor sugary. What's more, I had avoided peeling the
squash by steaming the cut pieces and then scooping the softened flesh
from the skin with a spoon, a process just as easy as roasting.
Now I needed to bolster the flavor of the puree, which consisted of
only water and steamed squash. I tried three separate tests in which I
sauteed garlic onion, and shallots in butter and then left each in the
pot during steaming. Before pureeing, I strained the sauteed bits from
the squash-infused broth. The garlic and onion were overpowering, but
the shallots complemented the squash nicely. I added salt, and while
the soup now tasted good, it still lacked depth of flavor.
As I pored over the notes, it occurred to me that perhaps I was
throwing away the answer to my squash flavor--the seeds and fibers. In
my next test, instead of ditching the scooped-out remnants, I added
them to the sauteing shallots and butter. In a matter of minutes, the
room became fragrant with an earthy, sweet squash aroma, and the
butter turned a brilliant shade of saffron. I finished the recipe by
straining out the shallots, seeds, and pulp. The resulting soup was
bold, intensely orange, and, for want of a better word, delightfully
"squashy."
Finishing touches included sugar (white sugar added only sweetness,
brown sugar added sweetness plus nuttiness) and heavy cream (some
recipes call for as much as 2 cups, but I found that 1/2 cup was
sufficient). Velvety and permeated with a heady squash flavor, the
soup was thick but not custardy, sweet but not pie-like. Finally, a
butternut squash soup worthy of its title.
Silky Butternut Squash Soup
Makes 1 1/2 Quarts, Serving 4 to 6
If you don't own a folding steamer basket, a pasta pot with a
removable pasta insert works well. Some nice garnishes for the soup
are freshly grated nutmeg, a drizzle of balsamic vinegar, a sprinkle
of paprika, or Buttered Cinnamon-Sugar Croutons (recipe follows).
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 medium shallots, minced (about 4 tablespoons)
3 pounds butternut squash (about 1 large), unpeeled, squash halved
lengthwise, seeds and stringy fibers scraped with spoon and reserved
(about 1/4 cup), and each half cut into quarters
Salt
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon dark brown sugar
1. Heat butter in large Dutch oven over medium-low heat until foaming;
add shallots and cooking, stirring frequently, until softened and
translucent, about 3 minutes. Add squash scrapings and seeds and cook,
stirring occasionally, until fragrant and cutter turns saffron color,
about 4 minutes. Add 6 cups water and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt to Dutch
oven and bring to boil over high heat; reduce heat to medium low,
place squash cut-side down in steamer basket, and lower basket into
pot. Cover and steam until squash is completely tender, about 30
minutes. Off heat, use tongs to transfer squash to rimmed baking
sheet; reserve steaming liquid. When cool enough to handle, use large
spoon to scrape flesh from skin into medium bowl; discard skin.
2. Pour reserved steaming liquid through mesh strainer into second
bowl, discard solids in strainer. Rinse and dry Dutch oven.
3. In blender, puree squash and reserved liquid in batches, pulsing on
low until smooth. Transfer puree to Dutch oven, stir in cream and
brown sugar and heat over medium-low heat until hot. Add salt to
taste; serve immediately.
Buttered Cinnamon-Sugar Croutons
Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees.
Remove crusts from 2 slices thick-cut white sandwich bread and cut
into 1/2-inch cubes (you should have about 1 1/4 cups). Toss cubes
with 1 tablespoon melted butter. Combine 2 teaspoons sugar with 1/2
teaspoon cinnamon, and toss bread cubes with mixture. Spread cubes in
even layer on parchment lined baking sheet; bake until crisp, 8 to 10
minutes.
Curried Butternut Squash Soup with Cilantro Yogurt
Sprinkle lightly toasted pumpkin seeds over each bowl of soup for a
nice textural contrast.
Follow recipe for Silky Butternut Squash Soup. While squash is
steaming, stir together 1/4 cup plain yogurt, 2 tablespoons minced
fresh cilantro leaves, 1 teaspoon lime juice, and 1/8 teaspoon salt in
small bowl. Add 1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder to squash while pureeing
in blender. Continue with recipe, garnishing each bowl of soup with a
dollop of cilantro yogurt.
