It's October, so that means one thing: squash are cheap and plentiful.
So, it's soup time. I'm not a big fan of squash by itself, but I've found that I like squash in soup. So I made some soup today. I had some for dinner and it's decent, though I think it'll get better with age. The ginger (I used a lot of ginger) adds a nice flavor. I'm planning on serving it when some friends come over for a study on Tuesday.
First, you need to know a little about how I cook. I don't typically measure things, unless I'm really uncertain about a recipe. I will check out a few different recipes of the same dish just to get an idea of what needs to be done. So the instructions will be a little vague, but c'est la vie.
Rico's Squash-Ginger-Mango Soup of Power
Ingredients
2 squash. I used acorn squash, but I'm guessing anything — even pumpkin! — will do.
3 mangoes.
1 hunk o' ginger root. Mine was rather large. I like ginger.
2 cans coconut milk (or coconut cream).
Vegetable or Chicken stock (4 cups?)
Random spices. I think I used salt, curry powder, turmeric. I know there was something else, but can't quite remember what.
1/2 to 3/4 stick of butter. Not margerine, but butter.
Brown sugar (2 tbsp? it's optional)
Process
Steam the squash. You can cook it as per normal in the microwave. Or if you're a lazy bum like me and have a broken microwave that you've yet to replace, you can heat the oven up to 375. Cut the squash in half, clean out the squash guts, poke the outsides all over with a fork and put them on a lightly greased cookie sheet, cut side down. Cover with tinfoil. You want to steam 'em so make sure there aren't any gaps in the tinfoil; you're essentially building a tent to steam the squash in. Stick 'em in for 45 minutes to an hour. Bigger squash = more time. I took my two acorn squash out at 45 minutes, which seems about right for ripe acorn squash.
While the squash are getting oh-so-yummy, take the time to chop up the mangoes into square chunks (no peel). Chop the ginger as well (no peel).
Take the squash out of the oven when they're done. Let them cool somewhat (not all the way). Like, say, 5-10 minutes. Then grab a spoon and clean out the squashy goodness into a bowl of some sort. Throw the squash, mango, and ginger remnants (skin, seed/pit, etc.) on your compost pile.*
Go get your Dutch oven. This is required; if you're not makin' soup with cast iron, you've got a screw loose (unless you're going the crock-pot all-day method, which is not appropriate for this soup).
Got the Dutch oven? Good. Get the burner hot, throw the butter in there and let it start to melt. Throw in less than half of your ginger. Oh, I also threw in some brown sugar here. And, come to think of it, it might have been nice to throw in some chopped onions too. Anyway, stir it up so that the butter and sugar combine and the ginger begins to get soft. If you do go with onions, let it go for, say, 5 minutes or so to saute the onions and get 'em soft and translucent.
Add your squash. Add some chicken stock. Add your mango. Add the rest of your ginger. Pour in enough stock so that things are covered; you want to cook the mangoes down and also get the squash cooked down a bit more. Add spices here — whatever you want, however much feels good. Get it boiling, then slip it down to medium or so to simmer. Stir frequently. If it looks like it may be too thick, add more stock. Remember, though, you're adding coconut milk later. If you think you put in too much stock ... well, find something else in the fridge to throw in. It's all good.
After a while (sorry, no real time frame ... 20 minutes?) head to the blender. You're gonna puree the mixture in small batches, then return the mixture to the Dutch oven.
Once puree'd and back in the Dutch oven, it's time to add the coconut milk. So open the cans and dump away, then stir up the mixture. You want to bring it to a boil again. Then set the temperature to somewhere between medium and medium low. Add some more spices. Curry powder is good, as is salt (this will be bland unless you salt it). If you have some ground peri-peri that could add some kick. Whatever else is handy or seems good, just throw it in. If you're concerned about the color, you could add some turmeric to get it to a brighter shade of yellow. Ok, done? Great. Simmer it for awhile (30 minutes? 45 minutes? I dunno).
And you've got soup! It should be good to eat right away, but I find stuff like this gets better after a few days in the fridge. Warm it up on the stove and serve hot. Enjoy!
* compost pile: When I was growing up, we lived out in the county on 10 acres with some woods around the house. Anytime we had fruit/vegetable remnants, my brother and I had to dispose of these in the “compost pile”. This involved walking out the back door to the woods, and throwing whatever it was as far as possible. It was fun to huck rotten tomatoes deep into the woods, though it requires a certain technique. I don't have this luxury now, and I miss it. But I do have a compost pile.