Classic Butternut Squash Soup

I adapted this recipe from one on the site for the Whole Foods Co-Op to make a simple, classic butternut squash soup with mild seasoning. Yes, winter is just as good of a time for squash soup as fall.   I was debating what to put on it for a garnish for this photo and I tasted it again and thought, oh...the sage flavor is so delicious in this soup.  And then  I remembered I had some dried sage hanging in my window so decided to crumble that and put it on top of a dollop of goat yogurt.  Ah...beautiful. But OOPS. As I looked at the recipe again I realized there was no sage in this soup.  There was thyme, but no sage.   No thyme for sage? Or no sagely advice for thyme?  Or only sage and thymely advice?  I'm soooooo confused.  And delighted I made this wonderful soup.  

Ingredients:
2 Tablespoons coconut oil
1 carrot, peeled and diced
1 celery stalk, diced
1 onion, diced (about 1 cup)
4 cups cubed butternut squash
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme or 1 tsp ground thyme
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
dash of freshly ground black pepper 


Preparation:
Heat oil in a large soup pot.  Add carrot, celery and onion.  Cook until vegetables have begun to soften and onion turns translucent, 3 - 4 minutes.  Stir in butternut squash, thyme, broth, and pepper.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until squash is fork tender, about 30 minutes.  Puree to desired consistency, using an immersion blender or other device.  I used my VitaMix and it was velvet creamy.


Nutrition:
Servings per recipe: 6          

Serving Size: 1 cup
Calories: 120
Total Fat: 5 g
Cholesterol: 0 mg
Sodium:  66 mg
Total Carbs: 19 g
Dietary Fiber: 5 g
Protein: 3 g

Kale Coconut Water Drink

The kale in Tom's vegetable bins is exploding!  The pure taste of tender, fresh kale is undeniably one of my favorite pleasures.  With the abundance of kale, I have the opportunity to try many new ways of exploring it's full potential.  Kale is a cruciferous vegetable, rich in calcium and cancer-fighting compounds.   It contains sulforaphane, which is a well studied phytochemical that may inhibit cancer-causing substances, according to Rebecca Katz, author of one of my favorite cookbooks, One Bite at a Time. 

I have been sharing some of the kale with my friend, Tahirih, who made a juice of kale, grapes and coconut water.  I had never tried coconut water, but was convinced by her that it's slightly sweet flavor was a great compliment to the kale. So I purchased a small container  (11.2 oz) of VitaCoco coconut water and put it with fresh kale and an apple into my VitaMix.  If you have never made a kale drink, this would be an excellent one to introduce yourself to this nutrition packed green drink. I am unfamiliar with the nutritional merits of coconut water, but will explore that another day.  All I know for sure is that this beverage was true summer Pzazz as I sipped it on the deck yesterday in hot, sizzling summer weather! 

Kale in raised garden bin

Ingredients:
1 cup loosely packed chopped kale  (destem it first)
165 grams (just less than 3/4 cup) coconut water  (that's half of the small container I purchased)
1 small apple ( I used a braeburn apple)

Preparation:
Put it all in the VitaMix and watch it whirl.  Delicious and pure!

Nutrition:
Servings per recipe: 1

Serving Size: 1 1/4 cup                    
Calories: 126
Total Fat: 1 g
Cholesterol: 0 mg
Sodium: 49 mg
Total Carbs: 30 g
Dietary Fiber: 4 g
Protein: 2 g