Butternut Squash Soup

On rainy days I like to eat soup, I mean that's pretty normal for most people right?  It warms me up while I listen to the rain drops hit my kitchen skylights, and in that moment everything is perfect and my life could be a movie (haha I really should have been a theater kid because I definitely have knack for the dramatics.)  Well growing up butternut squash soup was my favorite, but I didn't get to have it very often.  Now it is one of my go to soups.  It's very rich and filling without being heavy and it tastes like a creamy soup without any dairy.  If you're someone who also doesn't eat dairy you know how badly you miss foods that have that creamy consistency! Plus the great thing about this soup is it is very flexible and adaptable...you don't have sweet potatoes? (use yams or regular potatoes!) you have some extra vegetables you want to add in? (go ahead and roast them up as well).  It's pretty fool proof.  


B U T T E R N U T  S Q U A S H  S O U P  
R E C I P E


Ingredients
☂ 1 large butternut squash
☂ 1 lb. of carrots
☂ 2 medium sized sweet potatoes
☂ 5 garlic cloves
☂ 7 cups of chicken broth (I used Organic Chicken Better Than Bouillon to make my broth because it is so flavorful and is free of many allergens) **Also if you find your soup is thicker than you would like you can always add more chicken broth to thin it out.
☂ 2 cups of water
☂ olive oil
☂ salt and black pepper
☂ Any desired toppings [my suggestions: sauteed broccoli, toasted cashews, gluten free croutons, or crispy garlic]

Directions
☂ Place butternut squash whole in baking pan and place in oven (the reason behind this is to make it easier to peel and chop).  Then turn the oven onto 415F degrees and bake for 40 minutes.
☂ Remove butternut squash from the oven and let it sit until it is cool enough to peel and chop.
☂ Preheat oven to 400F degrees.
☂ Chop carrots and sweet potatoes into chunks (it doesn't need to be perfect but try not to cut the sweet potatoes more than 1/2 inch thick.)
☂ When the butternut squash has cooled, use a vegetable peeler to peel it and then chop it into 1 inch pieces.  
☂ Place the butternut squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, and garlic onto two baking sheets.
☂ Sprinkle all vegetables with salt and pepper and drizzle with a generous amount of olive oil.  Toss everything together to coat.
☂ Place both sheets into the oven and bake for 40 minutes.
☂ Remove the sheets from the oven and let them sit for about 10 minutes until the vegetables have slightly cooled.
☂ Now it is time to blend the vegetables with the chicken broth and water.  Add about 2 cups of roasted vegetables to 2 cups of liquid to the blender at a time (making sure to keep your hand on the lid of the blender so the soup doesn't get everywhere!) and blend until the mixture is smooth. When each batch is done add it to the soup pot and begin heating it on the stove top at medium heat.  
☂ When the soup is done heating through, top with whatever you'd like or eat it just way it is, it's great either way!
☂ WALAH!  Enjoy and start feeling nourished♥