Millburn-Short Hills Magazine Holiday 2017 | Page 26

flavor Squashing the Competition Recipes for football fans and fall lovers alike F WRITTEN AND PHOTOGRAPHED BY KATE MORGAN JACKSON all is well-known as pumpkin season, but don’t forget about the equally delicious butternut squash, which has a sweet and, yes, buttery flavor when it is cooked. If you are buying a whole butternut, look for a uniformly tan rind with no green streaks. Most markets now sell but- ternut already peeled and cut into cubes, all ready to be made into a hearty and healthy chicken butternut soup. BUTTERNUT DIP MAKES 2-3 CUPS HEARTY CHICKEN BUTTERNUT SOUP SERVES 6 INGREDIENTS 4 cups butternut squash, peeled and cubed 2 carrots, cut into 2-inch pieces 1 sweet onion, peeled and quartered 3 tablespoons olive oil Salt and pepper 4 cups chicken broth 2 cups shredded cooked chicken (rotisserie chicken works great if you don’t have leftovers) 4 cups baby spinach DIRECTIONS • Preheat oven to 425 degrees and line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. • Toss the squash, carrots and onion with olive oil. Spread in a single layer on the baking sheet and season with salt and pepper. Roast until tender, about 30 minutes. • Add the veggies to a blender along with the chicken broth. Puree until smooth (you can do this in batches if you need to). • Pour the puree into a large saucepan. Add the chicken and spinach and simmer until the spinach is wilted. You can add more chicken broth to thin out the soup if you like. • Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve. Switch out the football game-day onion dip for a creamy, dreamy butternut version, so you can get your days’ worth of vitamins A and C while cheering on your favorite team! 24 HOLIDAY 2017 MILLBURN & SHORT HILLS MAGAZINE INGREDIENTS 1 (2-pound) butternut squash 1 onion, peeled and cut into quarters 4 garlic cloves, unpeeled 3 tablespoons sour cream 1 ⁄ 1 2 teaspoons olive oil 1 8 teaspoon ground red pepper ⁄ 1 8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper ⁄ 3 ⁄ 4 teaspoon salt 1 2 teaspoon ground nutmeg ⁄ DIRECTIONS • Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut squash in half lengthwise and scoop out seeds. • Brush squash halves, Heat it up gently create a side dish for to the onion quarters and next day’s supper. garlic cloves with oil. Arrange squash halves, cut sides down, on rimmed baking sheet. Put onion quarters and garlic cloves on pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until tender. Cool slightly. • Scoop the cooked squash out of the peel and put in food processor with onions. Squeeze garlic cloves so that pulp goes into food processor and blend until smooth. • Add sour cream and remaining ingredients and pulse to combine. Serve warm with pita chips. ANY LEFTOVERS?