Smoky, Tangy, Spicy Butternut Squash Soup
It is the season of squash, root vegetables and hot peppers. It is also the season of savory, hardy soups. Traditionally squash, like butternut and acorn, is spiced with nutmeg and cinnamon and sweetened with brown sugar.
A yellow lentil bean soup from a Turkish deli in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn made me think differently and seek out tangy and smoky spices to make an amazing butternut squash soup.
Bay Ridge, Brooklyn is known for it authentic, delicious food thanks to ethnic neighborhoods such as Brooklyn’s Chinatown, little Mexico and Middle Eastern including Turkish, Lebanese, Yemenite and Moroccan among others.
The smoky flavor in Middle Eastern cooking comes from black cumin seeds and is milder than cumin. The tangy flavor often mistaken for paprika, is sumac. Both of these spices are found in the classic Middle Eastern seasoning known as Za’atar.
Za’atar is a mix of dried Greek oregano, sumac, black cumin seeds, dried marjoram and dried thyme.
This soup is both savory and super healthy. Black cumin seeds and sumac are known to be effective antioxidants. Butternut squash is great source of vitamin A. Parsnips and chili peppers are full of vitamin C.
Parsnips are closely related to parsley.
Smoky, Tangy, Spicy Butternut Squash Soup
1 butternut squash + 1 Vidalia onion + 2 parsnips + 2 to 3 Thai chili peppers + 3 to 4 cups chicken or veggie stock + 2 tablespoons EVO + bay leaves + fresh thyme + black cumin seeds + sumac + salt + black pepper
Serves 6 to 10. You’ll need: a hand blender or food processor and a 3 quart pot with a lid.
Roast the butternut squash. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Cut the butternut squash in half length-wise. It helps to cut off the end and the top of the squash and then begin cutting from the bottom and rocking the kitchen knife slowly - always with the squash on its side. Remove all seeds and strings. Line a cookie sheet with foil. Brush olive oil on the flesh side of the squash and cook it flesh down for 30 minutes or soft to cut.
2 tablespoons of EVO
1/2 Vidalia onion diced
2 peeled parsnips chopped
2 to 3 Thai chili peppers cut in half lengthwise
Sauté the oil, onion and parsnips for 5 to 8 minutes in a pot or Dutch oven. Stir chili peppers into the mix and cook for another minute.
3 cups chicken of vegetable stock
2 bay leaves
8 sprigs of fresh thyme tied together with cooking string
1 teaspoons black cumin seeds
1 teaspoon sumac
Add the stock, bay leaves, thyme, seeds and sumac to the onion parsnips mix. Let simmer, covered, on low for 15 minutes. Taste for spicy level. Take peppers out if it’s spicy enough; if not leave them in the mixture. Turn off heat completely and let stand covered.
Remove roasted squash from the oven. Salt and pepper the flesh side and let stand for 10 minutes to cool.
Remove bay leaves, thyme and peppers. Blend the onion parsnip mixture with a hand blender or in a food processor. Scoop out the flesh of one side of the squash and add to the mixture. Blend it in with the blender/processor.
Add more stock depending upon the thickness you prefer.
Salt and pepper to taste. Serve up with a pinch of both the sumac and black cumin seeds for color.
