Butternut Squash Soup

September 22nd was the first day of fall so I made some soup to commemorate the coming of colder weather.  My dad actually gave me the idea to make the butternut squash soup because he made a non-vegetarian version at his house the weekend before.  I had never actually made any soup from scratch before besides vegetable soup, but it turns out making soup (or the squash soup at least) is surprisingly easy.  The soup was the right mix of comfort and warmth to welcome fall.

Butternut Squash Soup

Ingredients
2 tablespoons unsalted margarine
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
1 butternut squash, peeled and chopped into 1 inch chunks
5 cups vegetable broth
1 teaspoon nutmeg

1. Melt the margarine in a large soup pot, add the onion, carrots and celery; cook until the onions are translucent
2. Add the squash, carrots, and celery and vegetable broth to the pot and bring to a simmer, cook until the squash is tender
3. Once the squash is tender, pour the soup into a blender and puree
4. Return the mixture to the pot and stir in the nutmeg, salt, and pepper to season ( I started with 1 teaspoon of nutmeg but continued adding until I got the taste I desired)

Green Chile Stew

Spicy and exotic adding heat to a hot summer night.
A nice hearty stew to help you find your way home.
The broth is boiling the carrots are hard, but when it’s all over the bowl is empty.

August was Green Chile season and I one night I had a hankering for some Green Chile Stew, so I looked up recipes and combined them/converted them to come up with the vegan recipe below.  The stew turned out really well, hearty, spicy, rich and warm. It was good that night and even better the subsequent days in fact I wish I had some right now as I write this.

Green Chile Stew

Ingredients
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
4 cups of vegetable broth
3-4 red skin potatoes, chopped in large pieces
3-4 fresh carrots, chopped in large pieces
1 jalapeño, diced
4 fresh green chiles, roasted, seeded, and chopped
½ teaspoon (or more) of chipotle
½ teaspoon (or more) of chili powder
Thickener- 2 tablespoons of flour and 4 tablespoons of water
Salt and pepper to taste

1. In a Dutch oven or stew pan, sauté the onion and garlic in the vegetable oil until the garlic is golden brown.
2. Add in the vegetable broth, potatoes, carrots and jalapeño and bring the mixture to a boil.
3. Once the stew is boiling, lower the heat and simmer for 45 minutes.
4. Add green chile, chipotle, chili powder, thickener, and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for another 20-30 minutes then serve and enjoy!