Butternut Squash Soup w/Pie Crust Croutons

Halloween & Fall Meal

There are a lot of Butternut Squash Soup recipes going around right now but this one has a few different twists to it. It is a lighter version of most soup’s due to the Coconut milk instead of heavy cream, it’s a recipe from Kelly Osbourne‘s diet tips, yes  Ozzie Osbourne‘s daughter,that’s where the Halloween part come’s in because Ozzie puts out a Halloween  feel don’t you think( I mean biting heads off bats)? Plus nothing says “FALL” like Butternut Squash. She says she ate this a lot while she was loosing  her weight.

Kelly’s Butternut Squash Soup

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 medium onion, diced small
1 large, or 2 pounds butternut squash, peeled, seeded, then cut into 1 inch cubes
2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
1 potato, Yukon gold or russet, cut into 1 inch cubes
4 cups vegetable stock or water
1 cup canned coconut milk
Salt and pepper as needed

1. In a large pot, heat oil to medium-low. Add garlic, onions and a pinch of salt, stirring until translucent, about 3 to 5 minutes.

2. Add squash, carrots, potato and stock, bring to boil, lower heat to a simmer and cook for 25 to 30 minutes or until vegetables can be easily pierced with a fork. Remove from heat and add the coconut milk(see my tip if you can’t find Coconut Milk)

3. Puree soup in a blender, working in batches so you don’t overflow. Season with salt and pepper to taste. ( I used my hand-held stick blender, if you don’t have one get one)

4. Garnish with a sprig of thyme or chopped parsley and a drizzle of good quality extra virgin olive oil.(I used a sprig of thyme and pie crust croutons)

Makes six 1-cup servings. Each serving: 219 cal, 13 g fat.

* I did not have coconut milk in a can, but I did have Cream of Coconut, so I mixed 1/2 cup with 1/2 cup evaporated milk. It probably made calories go out a bit but was very tasty and on the sweet side.

I sprinkled my “Pie Crust Croutons” on top and served with a grilled cheese Sammie.

I used part pre-cut squash and part fresh just because that’s what I had. Buy fresh its just a little more work peeling and chopping but its cheaper and fresher. Always a better choice.

My daughter Kelly and I both loved it and she says it’s a keeper and should be shared.

Enjoy!

Pie Crust Croutons

These are fun little guys to make. This is the finished product, but here are some steps on how to make them.

I got these mini fall cutters I think at Williams and Sonoma, love them. Any way you get your pie crust dough roll it out and cut shapes with your cutters. Preheat oven to 425, brush dough shapes with a egg wash and sprinkle with favorite toppings. I made Sweet (sprinkled with cinnamom and sugar) and Savory ( sprinkled with salt and pepper). Place on parchment paper and bake for approx. 7-8 minutes.

Note to self. This is a single layer of pie dough and I found on my second batch that if you fold over the dough and roll to make it thicker the croutons are even more AWESOMER! This is easy peasy and really fun to do.

This is before they went into the oven after egg wash and sprinkled goodies.

This is out of the oven. Ready for soups, salads, ice creams, puddings or just snacking by them selfs. The use’s for these little guys is just endless when you start thinking about what they are good on. Oh Im thinking the sweet ones on some Pumpkin Spice Ice Cream or the opposite way on some Butternut Squash Soup. Recipe to follow soon for that one.

I saw Martha Stewart decorate a Pumpkin Pie with these little treats now thats a “Good Thing” Enjoy

I

Related articles

• Apple Pie Cookies (caseytx.com)
• Easy Savory Pie Crust (for Pot Pies!) (saramakessoup.com)

Blueberry Icebox Pie

Happy July 4th, 2011

Last year it was Berry Pie’s for dessert. This year we are watching are middle so I will be making the “Light Pie”.

The trick: Fake a little fat.

Serves 10

INGREDIENTS

Vegetable-oil cooking spray

1 1/2 cups finely ground reduced-fat graham cracker crumbs

4 teaspoons light (reduced-fat) butter, melted

2 cups fresh blueberries (or frozen and thawed)

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 teaspoons powdered unflavored gelatin

8 oz reduced-fat cream cheese

8 oz fat-free cream cheese

14 oz fat-free sweetened condensed milk

Several fresh mint leaves

PREPARATION

Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly coat a 9″ springform pan or glass pie pan with cooking spray. Combine crumbs and butter in a bowl and press into pan. Bake 10 minutes. Puree 1 1/2 cups blueberries; mix with lemon juice in a microwavable bowl. Sprinkle gelatin on top and let stand 10 minutes. Microwave on medium 10 seconds to dissolve gelatin, then beat with an electric mixer or food processor at medium speed. Beat in cream cheeses and milk. Pour mixture over baked crust and chill until set. Garnish with mint and remaining blueberries.

THE SKINNY

313 calories per serving, 5.9 g fat (3.5 g saturated), 52.3 g carbs, 1.8 g fiber, 11.4 g protein

Ciao!

Independence Day Countdown

Independence Day, a day of family,friends,food and fireworks! Wow everything starts with a F? Freaky! So it is on count down at my house and each day I am going to post a July 4th foodie or party idea, and today its dessert first.Where else would you start? July 4th to me is BBQ meats,corn dishes,watermelon,clam bake’s,lemonade,cherry pie,flag cake and cupcakes with the toothpick flag stuck in the middle. Daisy’s and Sunflowers are the flowers of choice, red and blue bandana’s decorate everything and Lemonade and Ice Tea are the go-to drinks. So throw a daisy in your hair ,wrap a bandana around the dog’s neck and let’s have a party…

Berry Pie- It’s mostly Cherries but I had a few strawberries and blueberries hanging out so they jumped in the pan, therefore it is “Berry Pie”

Ingredients

1 recipe pastry for a 9 inch double crust pie ( I cheat see below)

4 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 cup white sugar

4 cups pitted cherries( I used 6 cups on this one, plump!)

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 tablespoons butter

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place bottom crust in pie pan. Set top crust aside, covered.

In a large mixing bowl combine tapioca, salt, sugar, cherries and extracts. Let stand 15 minutes. Turn out into bottom crust and dot with butter. Cover with top crust, flute edges and cut vents in top. Place pie on a foil lined cookie sheet — in case of drips!

Bake for 50 minutes in the preheated oven, until golden brown.

The only thing different I did this time was substitute the white sugar with splenda, and it was just a little bit more tart than the last one I made. I tried my best to make my pie crust top to look like Stars and Stripes.I used a pre-made pie crust, this is what works for me, you talented people(you know who you are) can make your own and I am sure it will be alot better. I brushed the top with an egg wash (2 egg yolks beaten with 2 tbsp.cream).Vanilla ice cream or whip cream are the topping choices so I say yes this time to the Ice Cream since I used Splenda on the pie,whoo hoo!I think tomorrow we will list the drink choices…Share your July 4th menu with us.Always ready to hear everyone’s foodies 🙂

Ciao!