My favorite part to Thanksgiving dinner … side dishes. I love the array of root veggies, real cranberry sauce, homemade stuffing. Yum! The turkey is good, but oh how I do love the side dishes. In honor of all the tasty things going alongside the turkey here’s a wonderful soup to start out the meal.
Serves 6 to 8
- 1 head of garlic
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 leeks, thinly sliced
- 2 lbs. of acorn squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
- Zest of 1 orange
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 4 cups vegetable stock
- Salt & pepper to taste
- Topping (optional): Sour cream, chopped chives
Directions
- Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.
- Trim off the tips of garlic head so the tops of the cloves are slightly exposed. Place the head of garlic on a sheet of aluminum foil, drizzle on the olive oil, add a pinch of salt.
- Wrap it up tightly and roast in the oven for about 30-40 minutes. Once nicely roasted, set aside to cool.
- In a large pot melt the butter over medium heat.
- Add the leeks and saute until softened.
- Add the squash, orange zest, nutmeg and cayenne pepper.
- Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Pour in the stock, bring it to a boil.
- Reduce heat to simmer, cover the pot, and cook until the squash is tender (about 20 minutes).
- Once squash is tender remove from heat and let cool slightly.
- In a blender, working in batches, puree the squash mixture and the roasted garlic cloves.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- In the center of each serving add a tablespoon of sour cream and a teaspoon of chopped chives. Ready to serve!
I’ll be sure to include my local farmers on my list of things to be thankful for this year! I hope you will too. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving everyone!