Baby Food Please

Do you ever have a recipe that you have been meaning to make...that you have plans to make... and then the time comes and something goes horribly wrong?  Well, that is what happened to this soup, although horribly wrong might just be the overstatement of the year.  And what went wrong was clearly my fault. 

This is the recipe I was planning on making:

Butternut Squash Soup

Ingredients

4 leeks (white and light green parts), chopped
1 3-pound butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 bay leaf
5 cups low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
kosher salt and black pepper
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, roughly chopped
1/4 cup shelled raw pumpkin seeds, roughly chopped (optional)

Directions:

1. Place the leeks, squash, bay leaf, broth, ¾ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper in a large saucepan or Dutch oven and bring to a boil.
2. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the squash is tender, 10 to 12 minutes.
3. Remove and discard the bay leaf. Working in batches, puree the soup in a blender until smooth (or use a handheld immersion blender).
4. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the rosemary and seeds, if desired, and heat, stirring occasionally, until fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes.
5. Divide the soup among bowls and top with the rosemary mixture. Serve with the bread, if desired.

 Sound delicious right? I believe I originally found it on the Martha Stewart website with a to die for picture I couldn't resist.

Well it didn't happen...I forgot the butternut squash at the grocery store. As I mentioned before this past weekend I was tired and slept a lot. Going back to the store for one ingredient did not sound like a great idea to me.  I could have asked Mr. J to go but the thought of chopping and sauteing just sounds like a bit too much work so I improvised big time.  Let me introduce you to the most minimalist soup recipe I have ever made...perfect for two servings.

Butternut Squash Soup

Ingredients

1/2 onion, chopped
1 package frozen pureed butternut squash

1/4 cup applesauce 1 cup chicken broth
1 teaspoon minced garlic (I used Garlic Gold nuggets)
kosher salt and black pepper
2 teaspoons olive oil

Directions:

1. Place the onions, salt, pepper and garlic in a saucepan and saute till tender.
2. Reduce heat and pour in broth, applesauce and pureed squash.  Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the soup is warm, 5 to 7 minutes.
3. Divide the soup among bowl.

 Admittedly the texture is a bit like baby food. I think next time that I would add more broth but again I was being super duper lazy and only used what was leftover from another recipe.  The taste however was delicious.  You could just catch hints of the apples from the applesauce.  I am dreaming of adding some ginger/cinnamon combination or some cayenne pepper for the next go around.  And there will definitely be a next go around.