Despite low fat content, butternut squash soup is filling and rich-tasting
As the seasons change, our diets change. In the fall, it’s normal to crave hearty soups like today's Roasted Butternut Squash Soup. It just might become a popular addition to your list of comfort foods.
Butternut squash, which has beige skin and a bell shape, is known for its mildly sweet and nutty taste. It’s available year-round in fresh, frozen or refrigerated cubes, and it can be prepared in a variety of ways. The smooth, bright-orange flesh contains high levels of beta-carotene, an antioxidant that the body converts to vitamin A. Beta-carotene helps prevent cell damage that can lead to chronic conditions like heart disease and even cancer.
Winter squashes have been cultivated in the Americas since ancient times, but butternut squash was developed in 1944 in Massachusetts when a pumpkin was crossed with a gooseneck squash.
Several winter squashes can be valuable additions to your diet. Acorn squash can be roasted, stuffed or used in soup. It has a tough skin of dark green and bright orange, and its flesh is sweet and yellow-orange.
Buttercup squash has a turban-like shape and dark green skin, and the delicata squash has a cylinder shape and pale skin with green or orange stripes. Delicata and buttercup squashes can replace sweet potatoes in any recipe. Other squashes are available in the fall and winter, and each has a unique appearance and flavor. Most important, these cold-weather squashes provide fiber, potassium, antioxidants and vitamins A and C, which are essential for strengthening your immune system in the fall or any time of year.
Today’s soup is low in fat, but it tastes rich. We like to add a topping of chives, Parmesan cheese and toasted panko breadcrumbs.
You’ll find that our soup will keep you full longer because it’s packed with fiber, and the complex carbohydrates will help to keep you energized for brisk walks as you enjoy the changing colors this fall.
Bethany Thayer is a registered dietitian nutritionist with Henry Ford Health. For more recipes and health information, visit henryford.com/blog. For questions about today’s recipe, email HenryFordLiveWell@hfhs.org.
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Roasted Butternut Squash Soup
Makes: 6 servings (1 cup each) / Prep time: 20 minutes / Total time: 1 hour 20 minutes
8 cups (about 2 small) butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into chunks
2 tablespoons canola oil, divided
1 cup diced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon rubbed sage
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons sherry
2 teaspoons margarine
⅓ cup panko bread crumbs
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon snipped chives
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Place squash chunks on a sheet pan with sides and drizzle with 1 tablespoon oil; toss to coat. Roast squash in oven for 35 to 45 minutes, or until tender.
When squash is tender, add 1 tablespoon oil to a large stockpot and sauté onions, garlic, and sage over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes. Add roasted squash and broth to a stockpot and heat to a boil. Remove from heat and use an immersion blender, food processor, or blender to puree soup until smooth.
If using a food processor or regular blender, puree soup in batches. Return soup to pot and stir in sherry. To prepare soup topping, melt margarine in a small sauté pan. Add panko bread crumbs and toast until golden brown. Remove pan from heat and allow crumbs to cool for about 5 minutes. Stir in Parmesan cheese and chives. Serve soup with topped with a sprinkling of bread crumbs and cheese.
From Henry Ford LiveWell.
200 calories (33% from fat), 7 grams fat (1 gram sat. fat), 29 grams carbohydrates, 6 grams protein, 177 mg sodium, 3 mg cholesterol, 173 mg calcium, 4 grams fiber. Food exchanges: 2 starch, ½ fat.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Butternut squash soup is low in fat, filling, rich-tasting
