Sweet Acorn Squash And Apple Soup Recipes

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°. Cut squash in half; remove seeds and fibers. Place squash, cut sides up, in rectangular pan, 13 x 9 x 2 inches. Pour water into pan until 1/4 inch deep. Bake uncovered about 40 minutes or until tender. Cool; remove pulp from rind and set aside.
• Melt butter in heavy 3-quart saucepan over medium heat. Cook onion in butter 2 to 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until crisp-tender. Stir in apples, thyme and basil. Cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in broth. Heat to boiling; reduce heat to low. Simmer uncovered 30 minutes.
• Remove 1 cup apples with slotted spoon; set aside. Place one-third of the remaining apple mixture and squash in blender or food processor. Cover and blend on medium speed about 1 minute or until smooth; pour into bowl. Continue to blend in small batches until all the soup is pureed.
• Return blended mixture and 1 cup reserved apples to saucepan. Stir in half-and- half, nutmeg, salt and pepper; heat until hot.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Cut the squash in half on the equator and remove the seeds with a spoon. Cut a flat spot on each end so the squash will sit flat. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and arrange the squash, cut side up. To 3 of the squash halves, add a peeled shallot and to the other 3 add 2 garlic cloves on each. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and season with 1 tablespoon each of the salt and freshly cracked pepper. Roast in the hot oven until very tender and starting to caramelize and collapse, approximately 1 hour. Remove from oven and when cool enough to handle, remove the squash from the skin. Reserve the roasted shallots and garlic with the squash. Can be done ahead.
• In a large Dutch oven, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and 2 tablespoons of the butter over medium-high heat and when the butter is starting to foam, add the raw diced shallots and saute until they are starting to caramelize, about 5 to 6 minutes. Deglaze with 1/2 cup of the chicken stock and stir to remove any fond. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add in the reserved squash, roasted shallots and garlic and then the remaining chicken stock. Stir to combine, then puree with a stick blender. The mixture will be very thick. Add in the cayenne, white pepper and the herbs. Stir in the cream and Worcestershire sauce and heat slowly over medium-low heat. When the mixture comes to a slow simmer, mix again with the stick blender and stir in 1/4 cup of the Parmesan and turn heat to low. Serve with a fresh crack of black pepper, a nice drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil and a light sprinkle of remaining Parmesan. Ladle into soup bowls and serve.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Put squash into a baking dish with the cut side down. Pour enough water into the baking dish to cover the bottom.
• Bake in preheated oven until the flesh of the squash is easily pricked with a fork, about 45 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool until squash can be handled. Scoop flesh into a bowl and set aside.
• Melt butter in a pot over medium-high heat. Cook onion, carrot, and garlic in melted butter until soft, 5 to 7 minutes. Pour chicken stock into the pot; add the squash.
• Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes.
• Pour mixture into a blender no more than half full. Cover and hold lid down; pulse a few times before leaving on to blend. Puree in batches until smooth and return to pot.
• Stir half-and-half, nutmeg, and cinnamon through the blended soup; season with salt and pepper. Thin the soup with water if desired.

Steps:

• In a large saucepan melt butter over medium heat; cook onion, stirring occasionally, for 4 minutes or until softened. Add squash, apples, potato, ginger and pepper; stir in water. Cover and bring to boil; reduce heat to low and simmer for 12 to 15 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
• In food processor or blender, puree soup, in batches if necessary, until smooth. Return to saucepan. Stir in apple cider and brown sugar; heat to boiling. Garnish with dollop of yogurt and sprinkle with pecans.

Steps:

• Turn crockpot to HIGH to get it warm while you fill it up.
• Pour apple juice in bottom of crockpot.
• Place squash, cut side up, in bottom of crockpot.
• On top of each piece of squash, sprinkle with salt, followed by 1/2 T butter, 1/2 T brown sugar, and 1 T dried cranberries.
• Sprinkle apples in and around the squash (about 1/4 cup will fit piled up on each squash).
• Juice lemon over the top of the apples, then sprinkle with the cinnamon and pour the maple syrup over the top.
• Cook the squash on LOW for 4-6 hours or HIGH for 2.5-4 hours. NOTE: crockpots are not created equal as far as temp goes and we will all buy different sized squash. . .that being said, cook times will vary. . .I don't mind eating mushy squash, but you can't eat undercooked squash simply because you can't cut it :) I cooked mine on low for 4 hours and it wasn't done so I cranked it up to high for 1 hour and it was perfectly cooked.
• When squash it tender, place each piece on a plate and sprinkle with the nuts.
• OPTIONAL: I am bad, so therefore I put another 2T of cold butter in with the apple juice and remaining apples on the bottom of the crockpot and stir til the butter is melted and then spoon the "sauce" over the top of the squash. If you like yours really sweet (as I do), feel free to drizzle it with more maple syrup or honey.