Monday, October 24, 2011

Butternut Squash Soup With Beans and Bacon

3 slices bacon1 cup chopped onion
2/3 cup chopped celery
3 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1/4 cup dry white wine

4 cups cubed and peeled butternut squash*
4 cups chicken broth
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper (cayenne)
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 cup half and half
1 Tablespoon chopped fresh oregano or 1 teaspoon dried
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 15-ounce cans Northern beans, rinsed and drained
3 Tablespoons toasted pumpkin seeds (optional)

*To make it easy to peel and cut the squash, boil a pan of water and remove from heat. Put whole squash in water and cover for 10 minutes. Carefully remove and dry off, and then use a vegetable peeler to remove the skin.

  1. Cook the bacon until very crisp and then set the bacon aside, reserving 2 Tablespoons of drippings.
  2. Saute onion and celery in bacon drippings on medium heat until tender, and then add minced garlic. Sautee one minute more.
  3. Add squash and cook another 3 minutes. Add wine and cook until liquid almost evaporates.
  4. Stir in chicken broth, cumin, red pepper, cinnamon, and cloves. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until squash is tender (about 10 minutes or more).
  5. Using an immersion blender, puree the soup until smooth.
  6. Stir in half and half, oregano, salt, pepper, and beans. Bring to a boil again.
  7. Allow soup to stand for as long as possible. Serve each bowl with pumpkin seeds and crumbled bacon on top.

Whole Wheat Pie Crust

If you have a food processor, you might find that making your own pie crust is a lot easier than you expected....
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into thin slices and then chilled in freezer for at least an hour
5-8 Tablespoons icewater

  1. Put the flour and salt in the bowl of the food processor, fitted with the chopping blade, and process briefly to mix.
  2. Put in the butter pieces and pulse 6 or 8 times until the butter pieces are pea sized.
  3. Add icewater in a steady stream with machine running, just until the dough holds together--no more than 30 seconds. (Check dough by pinching it between your fingers. If it sticks together, it's ready. If it crumbles apart, add a bit more water and pulse again.)
  4. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and cut in half. Put each dough half onto a piece of plastic wrap and press into a flat circle. Wrap with the plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour. (If you are only using one crust now, put the extra crust into a Ziplock bag and freeze until ready to use. To use, thaw in refrigerator and then follow rest of steps.)
  5. Turn chilled dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll into a 12-inch diameter circle, dusting with flour as needed to prevent sticking. Dough should be about 1/8 inch thick when finished rolling.
  6. Carefully wrap dough around rolling pin and gently transfer into deep dish pie pan. Press into contours of pan. Trim around the edges so about 1/4 inch of dough overhangs the edge of the pan. Then fold dough under and crimp with a fork.

If recipe calls for a prebaked crust (such as pumpkin pie or other custard style pies)...

  1. Freeze prepared crust 15 minutes in pie pan.
  2. Line crust with foil and add pie weights, dried beans, or rice to hold foil down.*
  3. Bake about 10 minutes at 350, until sides are set. Then remove foil and bake uncovered about 10 more minutes, until lightly browned.
  4. Fill crust and bake as directed in pie recipe. For best results, cover crust edges with foil to prevent over browning.
*I would not recommend substituting parchment paper for the foil.... Sarah