Super Soups for Winter, brought to us by guest blogger Julie Block!!

...from the kitchen of our very own Julie Block! Big shout out to Julie for sharing these nutritious and filling recipes with us! Thank you Julie!!

3 Super Soups for Winter

"Here are three soups I love to make on a winter weekend and have ready to go during the busy work week. Add a salad or some hearty crackers and hummus for a more filling meal. They reheat and freeze well." -Julie Block

Butternut Squash Soup  

Ingredients

• 2 medium whole butternut squash (about 4lb)
• 2 medium Granny Smith apples peeled and sliced 
•  2 Tbsp butter
• ½  large onion or 1 medium onion
• Fresh Sage leaves a large bunch about 8-12 decent sized leaves 
• 6-8 cups of low sodium vegetable broth (start with 6 for smaller recipe
• 1 ½ tsp of salt
• ¼ tsp  pepper
• ½ cup toasted pumpkin seeds  or sunflower seeds for garnish

**Substituting Dried Sage for Fresh Sage Leaves in Recipes. If your recipe calls for whole leaves instead of teaspoons of chopped sage, you can use the ratio 7 fresh sage leaves equal about 1 teaspoon of ground, dried sage. Just a general rule of thumb.

** 1 full container of vegetable broth is 4 cups

Instructions:

1.Heat the oven to 425 degrees and arrange rack in the middle

2. Line a baking pan or cookie sheet with heavy foil and place whole squash on it. Puncture the squash in 2 or 3 places with knife to let out steam while cooking. Roast until tender, about an hour. 

3. While squash is cooking peel,  core and cut apples into medium dice or slices. Cut onion into medium dice as well. Melt butter in large pot (6-8 quart pot) on low. Add onion, apple, salt and pepper and cook until softened about 7 minutes. Be careful not to burn. Stir occasionally and add the sage after about five minutes. Turn off the heat and put it on another burner to rest until squash is finished. 

4. When squash is ready (you will know because a knife will easily slide into the dense slender section of the squash) take it out and let it cool until you can handle it. Slice the stem off and then slice  the squash lengthwise and scoop the seeds out.  Using a large spoon scoop the flesh out and add it to the apples and onion mixture. Discard the skins.

5. Add the broth. Stir to combine, and bring to a boil over medium-high  heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and let simmer, stirring occasionally and breaking up any large pieces of squash, until flavors meld, about 15 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat. (You can add ⅓ cup of cream or rice milk, milk etc., but I don’t anymore because I don’t notice any difference).


6. Using a blender puree the soup in batches until smooth, removing the small cap from the blender lid and covering it with a folded paper towel or kitchen rag to allow steam to escape. It keeps blender lid from popping off. Alternatively you could use an immersion blender. Taste and season with salt/pepper. Serve garnished with pumpkin seeds. 

Lentil Soup

Ingredients:

3 Cups dried lentils, green or french lentils (french are less mushy)

8 Cups low sodium Vegetable broth

2-3 TBSP Olive Oil

2 tsp salt

4-6 medium cloves garlic crushed

1 large onion chopped

3 medium carrots sliced or diced

2-3 Stalks of celery chopped

1 tsp dried basil

½ tsp dried thyme

½ tsp dried oregano

Lots of freshly ground pepper

Red Wine Vinegar or Balsamic vinegar to drizzle on top

OPTIONAL: ½ can diced no salt added tomatoes

Variations: Can add ½ cup cooked farro, or  barley or 2 medium yukon gold potatoes cubed in small pieces and leftover cubed roasted chicken/turkey

Directions

1. Place olive oil, onion, celery and carrot in large pot and cook on low until onions soften. Add garlic.
2. Add lentils, broth, salt (potatoes if using). Bring to a boil then lower heat to the slowest simmer and cook partially covered for 20 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Add herbs, black pepper. If using cooked barley, farro, tomatoes or cooked chicken/turkey add those as well. Cook for 15-20 minutes partially covered on a slow simmer.
4. Serve hot with a drizzle of vinegar on top.  

Turkey/Chicken, White Bean, and Kale/Spinach Soup

Ingredients

3-4 Cups cut up cooked chicken or Turkey into bite size pieces

1-2 chopped onions into small pieces

3-4 stalks of celery chopped

2 TBSP minced garlic

1 TBSP minced ginger

8 Cups Vegetable Broth (2 containers)

1 bag frozen cubed butternut squash

1 bag fresh baby spinach or baby kale  

1 15 oz can baby butter beans, drained and rinsed

1 15 oz can great northern beans, drained and rinsed

1 15 oz can adzuki or black beans, drained and rinsed

2 tsp dried basil

2 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp dried cumin

½ tsp sea salt

¼ tsp pepper

2-3 TBSP Olive Oil

Directions

In a 6-8 quart pot saute onions, celery, garlic, and ginger in olive oil until soft on low heat. Be very careful not to burn garlic or ginger. Add broth, beans and spices. Cook on low-med heat for 5 minutes. Add squash, and chicken/turkey, and bring to boil. Reduce to simmer for 15-20 minutes with lid on pot. Add the spinach or kale last five minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Now go fix yourself a bowl of soup...curl up with a good read and practice some self care!

"Self-compassion is simply giving the same kindness to ourselves that we would give to others. "

– Christopher Germer