Butternut Squash Soup

On a cold, rainy January evening, butternut squash soup seemed to make perfect sense. The extra warming quality of a little bit of cumin made it downright cozy.

The recipe is very easy to make. Take one butternut squash, cut it into slices about 1 inch wide. Coat a baking sheet with a spray of olive oil and place into a 350 degree oven. It takes a good 1/2 hour or more for the squash to become very tender. While it's baking, go ahead and chop one onion and two shallots up finely and place into a pan with 1 T. oil or butter (I use Smart Balance--it has a good taste and 1T. gives you 50% of your vitamin D for the day). Once the onions are sweated, add 2 potatoes that are cubed and 6 c. chicken broth. Once the potatoes are tender, add the baked squash that had been cut away from the rind. Once everything is cooked down a bit, turn off the heat and let it sit for a bit. Put the soup into the blender and puree until smooth. Return to the heat and add a dash of nutmeg and 1/2 t. cumin. Season to taste with a bit of salt and pepper.

Good, easy, and healthy!