Butternut squash soup with kielbasa

Is it possible to have too many good butternut squash soup recipes? Not yet, at any rate.

Butternut squash and sausage soup
From “American Favorites” by Betty Rosbottom

Ingredients
2 tablespoons butter, divided
2 cups chopped onions
8 cups peeled, cubed squash (about a 2½-pound squash)
6 cups broth
1½ teaspoons dried thyme leaves
½ teaspoon salt
1 bay leaf
¾ to 1 cup milk (or use more broth if you want to avoid dairy)
6 ounces turkey kielbasa, sliced ⅛-inch thick

Method
In a large heavy pan, melt 1 tablespoon butter. Cook onions over medium low heat until softened. Add squash and cook for 4 minutes. Add broth, thyme, salt and bay leaf. Bring to a simmer and cook, uncovered, until squash is very tender, about 40 minutes. Remove bay leaf. Cool soup slightly. Puree soup.

Return soup to pot and stir in milk. Cook long enough to heat through. (Can make the soup ahead through this stage.)

Meanwhile, in remaining 1 tablespoon of butter in small skillet, cook sausages until browned on both sides. Serve soup garnished with kielbasa. Serves 8.

Rating: Very nice flavor from the thyme, an excellent fall or winter soup. The consistency falls nicely in between super thick and thin. The kielbasa pairs well with this, but the soup would be just dandy without it if you want to make it vegetarian. I would definitely make this again.

Potato butter bean soup

 My mother used to make a potato soup I really liked as a child. I'm pretty sure I made it a few times when I was first married, but I honestly don't know if I remember how at this point. I don't seem to have copied a recipe, possibly because there wasn't really much of one. It doesn't appear to be in the hot mess that was her recipe box. I know it involved sliced potatoes, had some milk added toward the end before serving and was always garnished by dried chives. I wonder if I would like it now or if it's one of those things best left to nostalgia.

Butter bean vichyssoise with chives
From “365 A Year of Everyday Cooking and Baking” by Meike Peters, who prefers her vichyssoise warm.

Ingredients
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 shallot, chopped
¾ pound Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 15.5-ounce can butter beans, drained
1 small leek, white and light green parts, sliced
3¾ cup broth
1 bay leaf
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¼ cup cream
2 tablespoons chives chopped

Method
In a large heavy pot heat oil and cook shallots for 2 minutes. Add potatoes, beans and leek and cook for another 2 minutes. Add broth, bay leaf, nutmeg and salt and pepper to taste. Cover and bring to a simmer and cook until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Remove bay leaf and puree soup. Add cream and heat through. Serve warm garnished with chives. Serves 4

Rating: A really excellent potato soup. Lovely creaminess and warmth of flavor from the butter beans and nutmeg.A pretty quick fix as a bonus. One of the favorites out of all the potato soups I've been making this year. This one will stay in the rotation. It's worth getting nostalgic over.

Squash kale pasta, sun-dried tomato artichoke dip pasta, kielbasa kale pasta

 

Dave says kale plants are like cats. They just move in. Certainly that's true in one corner of the yard where one plant went to seed one year and now we have kale. Lots and lots kale. It's one of the last things standing each year and one of the first sprouts back. 

Kale was one of those things that somehow got left behind on the boat when our particular German ancestors came over. Cabbage in the form of sauerkraut came along, but only the meat and potatoes part of the East Friesian standard of sausage, potatoes and kale made the trip, at least where our people settled. Hence the cardiac case rate in central Iowa. So I try to sneak a certain amount of the kale largesse in where I can.

Winter squash and kale pasta with pecan breadcrumbs
From Bon Appetit, November 2021

Ingredients
½ cup finely chopped pecans
½ cup panko
Zest and juice of 1 large lemon, divided
3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon olive oil, divided
1 large butternut squash (3-ish pounds), peeled, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
2 teaspoons dried oregano
12 ounces spaghetti or other long pasta
6 garlic cloves, slice thin
1 large bunch kale, ribs and stems removed, cut into chiffonade
½ cup butter
1 ounce Parmesan cheese, finely grated
¼ cup chopped parsley

Method
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread pecans and panko on a rimmed baking sheet and cook 7 to 9 minutes until toasted, tossing once. Watch carefully to avoid overbrowning. Transfer to a small bowl and toss with lemon zest and 1 teaspoon olive oil.

Increase oven temperature to 400. Roast squash on a rimmed baking sheet large enough to spread cubes in a single layer. A half sheet works well, or you might need two smaller pans. Toss with 2 tablespoons olive oil, oregano, salt and pepper. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, tossing once part-way through the cooking time.

Meanwhile, cook pasta in boiling salted water until just al dente. Drain, but reserve some pasta water.

Heat remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large deep skillet. Cook garlic until fragrant but not browned. Add kale and kook a few minutes to wilt. Add 1 cup reserved pasta cooking water, cover and cook until kale is completely wilted, about 4 minutes. Add butter to pot and stir until melted. Add Parmesan and additional cooking liquid if needed.

Remove from heat and toss with lemon juice, squash and parsley. Serve topped with breadcrumb mixture. Serves 4 to 6.

Rating: Very nice. Bright lemon flavor and nutty flavor and crunch factor from the topping. I'd make this one again.

 

When I first saw this recipe, I thought yum! And my second thought was, yay!, I already have caramelized onions on hand, because there's no way those onions are cooking in the time listed in the original recipe. (For a dissection of the Big Lie about caramelized onion cooking time, check out this Slate article. Preach. Best and truest line from writer Tom Scocca: "In truth, the best time to caramelize onions is yesterday.") And one more plug for crockpot caramelized onions here.

My third thought, once I read it more closely, was that original version was essentially sausages on a small bed of pasta, and I happened to be more in the mood for pasta with a small bit of meat in it, so I rearranged accordingly. 

I liked it well enough that I made it again the next week, this time biting the bullet and taking the hour to get the onions truly caramelized from scratch and adding in some of the kale abundance.

Caramelized onion kielbasa kale pasta
Adapted from this recipe in the Star Tribune Taste section by Meredith Deeds.

Ingredients
2 tablespoons butter, divided
1 large onion, thinly sliced
½ cup panko
14 ounces kielbasa, cut into half moons
1 pound farfalle or other short pasta
2 cups or more chicken broth
1 cup cream
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 cups chopped kale leaves
1½ cup shredded Gruyere cheese, divided
¼ cup chopped parsley

Method
Melt 1 tablespoon of butter over low heat in a large skillet until softened. Cover and cook for 10 minutes. Uncover and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until onions become a deep brown color, another 40 minutes or more. Season with salt and pepper.

Melt remaining butter in a small skillet. Toast panko in butter until lightly browned. Set aside.

Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until nearly al dente.

Meanwhile, in another large deep skillet, brown kielbasa on both sides. Remove from pan and set aside. In same pan, heat chicken broth, cream and Dijon mustard for about 10 minutes until saucy, adding kale after 7 minutes so it has a chance to wilt. Stir in cooked onions, kielbasa and 1 cup Gruyere. Add pasta and cook until al dente, adding pasta cooking water as needed. Adjust seasoning as needed. Serve topped with toasted panko, remaining Gruyere and parsley.

 Rating: I put this in the keeper pile. The sauce is creamy and mustardy, giving some of that German sausage on a bun flavor. Very good hearty cold weather dish. Absolutely needs those caramelized onions, and don't be tempted to skip the panko topping.

 

 

 

This next recipe got its start from deciding what to do with some leftover artichoke dip after guests left. Now I just make it on its own.

Sun-dried tomato and artichoke pasta with kale
Adapted from the dip recipe in “Casserole Crazy” by Emily Farris.

Ingredients
1 13.75-ounce can artichoke hearts, chopped
6 ounces sun-dried tomatoes, chopped (oil packed or recipe ready)
4 cloves garlic, minced
½ of a large onion, minced
8 ounces cream cheese
1 cup mayonnaise
½ tablespoon dried basil
3/4 cup plus ¼ cup grated Parmesan, divided
2 cups chopped kale leaves
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Cayenne pepper, salt
1 pound pasta
½ cup crème fraiche

Method
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix artichoke hearts, sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, onion, cream cheese, mayonnaise, basil, ¾ cup Parmesan, kale, crushed red pepper flakes and cayenne and salt to taste. Transfer to a greased 2 quart casserole and bake, uncovered, for 45 minutes or until golden and bubbly.

Meanwhile, cook pasta in boiling salted water until al dente. Drain, reserving some pasta cooking liquid. In a large pan, combine drained pasta, baked artichoke dip, crème fraiche and most of the remaining Parmesan. Add more cooking liquid and salt as needed to make a sauce. Serve sprinkled with some more Parmesan.

Rating: If you liked the hot artichoke dip ubiquitous at '90s parties, this one is for you. Sun-dried tomatoes and cayenne pepper add a bit of punch and kale adds a bit of color.