Test Kitchen - Roasted Acorn Squash Soup

This Test Kitchen post's material was a point of excitement for me because it was the first time I've ever used the oven at Duc's place...because he just moved into his new apartment on Friday! The other places he's been have never had working ovens so you can just imagine how awesome it was to finally use one. The ingredient for last week was acorn squash and while yes, there are plenty of recipes roasting it just as is, I wanted to do something different. So, a soup was necessary. This one's pretty simple and also easily made vegetarian so I would suggest you take a shot at it to brighten up your day! It's sweet and smooth, a loved combination. Enjoy!

Step 1: Ingredients (yields 2-3 servings)

• 1 medium acorn squash (about 1.5 lbs)
• 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
• 2 tbsps olive oil
• 1 cup chicken/vegetable broth
• 2 tsps nutmeg
• 1/2 tbsp paprika
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Step 2: Roasting the squash
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Drizzle olive oil onto a large baking sheet - determine the amount by how large your acorn squash is as you want to cover the entire cut surface. With your acorn squash, remove the top part so that you have a flat side. Then split it in half and remove seeds with a spoon. Place face down on the baking sheet in the oil. Bake for 15-20 minutes.


Step 3: Prepping the puree
While the squash is roasting, chop up your onion and place into a large saucepan with 2 tbsps of olive oil. Cover pan and turn on medium-high. Cook until translucent. When the squash has finished roasting, remove from the oven and let cool before scooping out flesh into a food processor (see? easy way not to have to peel it prior to cooking!). Add onions to processor and pulse until smooth puree forms.


Step 4: Finishing
Place puree back into saucepan and turn on medium heat. Slowly stir in broth until well incorporated; you should do this bit by bit so as to evenly distribute. If it is still too thick for your liking, you may add more broth. Stir in nutmeg and paprika. Take off heat and serve with freshly ground black pepper.



Photography by Minerva Thai.
There won't be a Test Kitchen ingredient this week as I will be doing OC Restaurant Week posts all that time! Tune back in for Test Kitchen to resume March 5th!