Amazon Bean Soup with Winter Squash & Greens (adpted from EatingWell Magazine February/March 2006) made by Jamie Morin

Ingredients

1 tablespoon butter

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 carrots, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

6 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth

3 pounds buttercup squash, peeled and diced (about 6 cups) [I use whatever kind of winter squash is on hand]

1 plum tomato, chopped [Since tomatos are rarely in season when winter squash is available, I use canned tomatos.] ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper ¼ teaspoon salt ⅛ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

2 15-ounce cans pinto or other brown beans, rinsed [Again, whatever is on hand. Black beans are my favorite.] 10 ounces spinach, stemmed and coarsely chopped [Or chard, or kale, or whatever, about four cups]

1 lime, cut into wedges

1. Melt butter in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add garlic, carrots and onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender and lightly browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Add broth and scrape up any browned bits with a wooden spoon. Add squash, tomato, crushed red pepper, salt and pepper and bring to a boil.

Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until the squash is very soft and almost breaking apart, about 20 minutes.

2. Transfer 3 cups of the soup to a blender and puree until smooth.

(Use caution when pureeing hot liquids.) [I'm too lazy for this step.

Sometimes I just mash in the pot, or use an immersion blender.] Return the pureed soup to the pot. Stir in beans and spinach and cook over medium heat until the beans are heated through and the spinach is wilted, about 5 minutes. Serve with lime wedges. Yum.

Cinnamon-Spiced Pumpkin Soup made by Carol Freedman

Ingredients:

4 cups (about 2 pounds) pumpkin, peeled, seeded, cubed
2 cups fat-free half-and-half  (Minda’s comment: I would use a cup of organic cream and a cup of organic whole milk)
1-2 tablespoons light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4-1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Chives, snipped

For convenience, 2 cans of pumpkin can be substituted for the fresh pumpkin. Any yellow winter squash such as butternut, Hubbard or acorn can also be used.

1.     Cook pumpkin in medium saucepan, covered, n 1 inch of simmering water until thender, about 15 minutes. Drain well. Process pumpkin and half and half in food processor or blender; return to saucepan. Stir in brown sugar and spices and heat just to boiling; reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 5 minutes.

2. Pour soup into bowls; sprinkle with chives.

Roasted Squash Soup made by Elisa and Barbara Wells

Adapted from Vegetarian Planet, by Didi Emmons (Harvard Common Press, 1997).

This smooth and creamy soup combines flavorful winter squashes with onion, spices, sherry, and fresh ginger to make a soup that will entrance family and guests alike.

It’s simple to make, since the squash roasts in the oven while you cook other things. You could even make it a day ahead, if you like.

Either way, this is a lovely soup to warm the heart, filled with minerals, carotenes, and autumn harvest flavor, a soup to be thankful for!

INGREDIENTS

1 small butternut squash (about 1 1/2 pounds), cut in half
1 acorn squash, cut in half
1/2 spaghetti squash (about 1 1/2 pounds)
3 tablespoons butter or olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
1 teaspoon curry powder
2 Granny Smith or other tart apples, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
2/3 cup sherry
5 cups water or vegetable stock
1 teaspoon salt
Fresh-ground black pepper to taste
Pinch cayenne (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 400F. Lay the squash halves cut side down on baking sheets, and roast them for 45 minutes or until the flesh is soft (the spaghetti squash may take a bit longer). When the squash has cooled a little, scoop out the seeds and discard them. Then, with a large spoon, scoop out the flesh of the squash into a bowl.

2. Heat the butter or oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until the onion softens. Add the garlic, ginger, and curry powder, and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the apples and the sherry, and simmer for 10 minutes, or until the apples soften.

3. Puree the squash flesh with the water or stock in batches in a blender or food processor. Transfer the squash puree to a large saucepan, then puree the apple-sherry mixture, and add this to the pureed squash.

4. Heat the soup, and season it with the salt, pepper, and, if you like, cayenne. Ladle the hot soup into bowls, and serve.

Serves 6.

Curried Yam Soup with Coconut Milk (aka “Super Beta Carotene Soup”)

Made by Minda Coombs

1 medium onion, diced

3 cloves garlic minced

2 T. olive oil

2 large carrots, diced

1 T. curry powder

¼ t. red pepper flakes

3 large yams, peeled and cubed

1 quart vegetable stock

1 ½ T. fresh ginger, minced

1 C. coconut milk

Sweat the onions, garlic and carrots with the olive oil in a 2 quart stock pot. Once the onions become a bit translucent and the carrots soften, add the curry powder, red pepper flakes and ginger. Stir and heat through. Add cubed yams and 1 quart of vegetable stock. Add water if necessary to completely cover the yams. Bring to a moderate boil and reduce t simmer. Continue to simmer, covered, until yams are tender. Remove soup from heat, add coconut milk and blend with a hand blender until smooth, or transfer to a food processor or a blender and puree until smooth.

Black Bean Soup made by Minda Coombs




1 pound dried black beans
2 bacon slices, chopped
1 cup chopped onion
3/4 cup chopped carrot
3/4 cup chopped celery
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced
4 (14-ounce) cans fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes, undrained
1/3 cup minced fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream

Sort and wash beans; place in a large bowl. Cover with water to 2 inches above beans; cover and let stand 8 hours or overnight. Drain and rinse beans.

Cook bacon in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, reserving drippings in pan. Add onion, carrot, and celery to drippings in pan; sauté 10 minutes or until tender. Add garlic and jalapeño; sauté 2 minutes. Add beans, bacon, broth, and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 1 1/2 hours or until beans are tender. Place 4 cups soup in a blender or food processor; let stand 5 minutes. Process until smooth; return pureed soup to pan. Stir in cilantro, lime juice, salt, and pepper. Serve with sour cream.

Yield:  12 servings (serving size: 1 cup soup and 1 tablespoon sour cream)

CALORIES 215 (20% from fat); FAT 4.8g (sat 2.1g,mono 1.6g,poly 0.7g); PROTEIN 12g; CHOLESTEROL 8mg; CALCIUM 95mg; SODIUM 570mg; FIBER 7.7g; IRON 3mg; CARBOHYDRATE 32.5g

Rich and Spicy Coconut & Red Lentil Soup Recipe #74780 recipe brought by Lee Petrie

This is a marvelous soup -- great for a cold evening. It is great served with bread.

1 hour | 15 min prep

SERVES 4

• 2 tablespoons safflower oil
• 2 red onions, chopped fine
• 1 birds eye chile, seeded and finely sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 inch fresh lemongrass, outer layers removed and inside finely sliced
• 1 cup red lentil, rinsed
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon Hungarian paprika
• 1 2/3 cups coconut milk
• 3 3/4 cups water
• 1 lime, juice of
• 3 1/2 scallions, chopped
• 1 cup cilantro, finely chopped
• salt & fresh ground pepper
• naan bread, to eat with soup (optional)

1. Heat oil in a large pan and fry onions, chile, garlic and lemongrass for 5 minutes, until onions are softened but not brown, stirring occasionally.
2. Add lentils and spices to the pan.
3. Add the coconut milk and water and stir.
4. Bring to a boil, stir, and then reduce heat. Allow mixture to simmer for 45 minutes until lentils are nice and soft, almost mushy.
5. Add the lime juice, scallions and cilantro, reserving a bit of each for garnish.
6. Season with salt and pepper and ladle into your favorite soup bowls!
7. Garnish and serve hot with naan!

THICK & RICH RED BEAN SOUP made by Kendra Wilks

 Recipe By     : 

 Serving Size  : 6                    

 Categories    : Soups                            Cuban

   Amount  Measure       Ingredient -- Preparation Method

 --------  ------------  --------------------------------

    1       lb           Red kidney beans, soaked

    2       qt           Water

    1       ea           Bay leaf

    1       lg           Green bell pepper, seeded &

                         -- quartered

                         -----SOFRITO-----

    1/4     c            Olive oil

    4       ea           Garlic cloves, chopped

    1       lg           Onion, chopped

    1       lg           Green bell pepper, diced

    1       c            Tomatoes, coarsely chopped

    1       tb           Red wine vinegar

    1/2     c            Dry sherry

    1/2     ts           Oregano

    1/2     ts           Cumin

                         Salt & pepper

                         -----TO FINISH-----

    2       md           Potatoes, diced

    1       c            Butternut squash, diced

                         Olive oil to taste

Combine beans, water bell pepper & salt, bring to a boil & simmer for 1.5 to 2 hours.  Add more water as needed.

SOFRITO: Heat oil in a skillet, saute the garlic, onion & bell pepper till tender.  Add tomatoes, vinegar, sherry, oregano, cumin, salt & pepper & cook 10 minutes.

When beans are tender, add the sofrito, potatoes & squash.  Stir to blend, & cook over a low heat until the potatoes & squash are tender.  Either serve as is or puree.  Drizzle some olive oil over each serving.

Adapted from Randelman & Schwartz, “Memories of a Cuban Kitchen”