RECIPE: “Squashed” Apple Soup

We recently came across this healthy butternut squash soup recipe by nutrition expert Joy Bauer that uses apples, and our editor made it during Hurricane Sandy while staying at her aunt’s house because she had no power! It was amazing, so we decided to share it here. Enjoy!

“Squashed” Apple Soup

INGREDIENTS
1 butternut squash
½ tsp salt (split in half)
½ tsp pepper (split in half)
½ cup water
1 onion, diced
1 tbsp olive oil
2 apples, diced (we used golden delicious)
3 ½ cups reduced sodium chicken broth
1 tsp nutmeg
1 bay leaf

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut a butternut squash in half lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds, and mist the flesh with oil spray. Sprinkle each half with ¼ tsp of salt and ¼ tsp peper (we used less pepper!) Place squash flesh side down in a baking dish and add half a cup of water. Bake until flesh is fork tender, about one hour.

Once it’s cooled, scoop out the flesh and set aside. In a large pot, sauté one diced onion in a tablespoon of olive oil until translucent, about 10 minutes.

Add the squash, two chopped apples, 3 ½ cups of reduced sodium chicken broth, a teaspoon of nutmeg and a bay leaf; bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer 30 minutes.

Cool slightly, remove the bay leaf and puree in a blender until smooth (we used a stainless sleet immersion blender right in the pot).

Makes 4 servings.