Butternut Squash Bisque

I've been really enjoying a pescetarian diet and I'm finding myself leaning more away from chicken, beef and pork. This week I am planning more pescetarian friendly meals and another reason is that I've been successful losing weight while on this diet. Perhaps its the focus of more color in my meals brought on by the various combinations of fruits and vegetables that's been working really well for me. Whatever it is, I'm going to stick with it!

The weather has gotten a little cooler here in Chicago so it was a good time to make some soup. In doing a search on my Google Reader, I looked through some recipes for butternut squash. I came across Kim's blog where she used the following recipe. It looked simple enough and turned out wonderfully! I made a few adaptations to the original recipe by adding a bit more flavor through the addition of thyme, garlic salt and onion powder. This paired perfectly with baguette slices with goat cheese & pesto and the roasted vegetable panini I made!

Butternut Squash Bisque
recipe adapted from AllRecipes

1 tablespoon canola oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/2 cup diced onion
3/4 cup diced carrots
4 cups peeled and cubed butternut squash
3 cups vegetable stock
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon onion powder
ground nutmeg to taste
1/4 cup heavy cream


Heat the oil and melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Cook and stir the onion in the butter and oil under tender.

Mix the carrots and squash into the pot. Pour in vegetable stock, and season with all the seasonings/spices. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until vegetables are tender.

In a blender or food processor, puree the soup mixture until smooth. Return to the pot, and stir in the heavy cream. Heat through, but do not boil. Serve warm with a dash of nutmeg.


I'm also submitting this recipe to Neha's SWC: Soups blogging event! Be sure to check out her blog for the delicious soup round up at the end of the month!

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Chicken Veggie Alfredo Lasagna

Quite a few fellow bloggers have been making lasagnas recently and having a hodge podge of random ingredients on hand, I figured I'd jump the bandwagon and use up the miscellaneous amounts of items in my fridge. I didn't have any tomato/pasta sauce on hand (which is a reminder for me to make a big batch soon!) so I searched online for a quick alfredo sauce to use up the cream I had. I came across This Recipe from AllRecipes.com to use as a guide and made my adaptations outlined below (and this is not a figure friendly dish as written!):

Quick & Easy Alfredo Sauce
adapted from Allrecipes.com

1 stick butter
10 oz cream cheese (1 brick + 2 oz cream cheese)
1 tablespoon garlic salt (I used The Spice house brand)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1-2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
1-2 tablespoons fresh chopped basil

In a saucepan, melt butter.
Add cream cheese and whisk to melt until smooth.
Add garlic salt and stir in heavy cream.
Allow to boil for 1-2 minutes until heated through.
Stir in fresh herbs and toss with pasta.... or use in a lasagna as I did below:

Chicken Veggie Alfredo Lasagna
original Joelen recipe
(to use up random ingredients on hand)

1 cooked chicken breast, sliced
1 small yellow squash, halved lengthwise and sliced into half moons
1 small zucchini, halved lengthwise and sliced into half moons
1 cup sliced white button mushrooms
1 cup shredded colby jack cheese
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
9 lasagna pasta sheets (dry)

- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a baking dish, spread 1-2 tablespoons of prepared alfredo sauce.
- Place a layer of 3 dry lasagna pasta sheets.
- Top with half of the chicken, squash, zucchini and mushrooms.
- Sprinkle with half of the cheeses.
- Place another layer of 3 dry lasagna pasta sheets.
- Spread enough prepared alfredo sauce over pasta sheets to cover.
- Top with remaining chicken, squash, zucchini and mushrooms.
- Sprinkle with half of the remaining cheeses.
- Place top layer of 3 dry lasagna pasta sheets.
- Spread enough prepared alfredo sauce over pasta sheets to cover.
- Sprinkle with remaining cheeses.
- Bake in preheated oven for 45-50 minutes until pasta is cooked and cheese is golden brown & bubbly.

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Curried pear & butternut squash soup

This soup was made for my Soup & Sandwich Swap event, which you can read about HERE for more recipes and pictures.

Megan & Matt's curried pear & butternut squash soup

1 butternut squash (about 2 3/4 pounds)
1 tablespoon butter
2 cups chopped peeled Bartlett pear (about 1 pound)
1 1/2 cups thinly sliced onion
2 1/3 cups water
1 cup pear nectar
2 (14 1/2-ounce) cans vegetable broth
2 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup half-and-half
1 small Bartlett pear, cored and thinly sliced

Preheat oven to 375°. Cut squash in half lengthwise; discard seeds and membrane. Place squash halves, cut sides down, on a baking sheet; bake at 375° for 45 minutes or until tender. Cool. Peel squash; mash pulp. Set aside 3 1/2 cups pulp, reserving remaining squash for another use.

Melt butter in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add chopped pear and onion; sauté 10 minutes or until lightly browned.

Add squash pulp, water, and next 5 ingredients (water through pepper). Bring to a boil; partially cover, reduce heat, and simmer 40 minutes.

Place one-third of squash mixture in a blender; process until smooth. Pour puréed mixture into a large bowl; repeat procedure with remaining squash mixture.

Return squash mixture to pan; stir in half-and-half. Cook over low heat 3 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Ladle soup into bowls, and garnish with pear slices.

Serves 8 (serving size: 1 1/4 cups)

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Butternut Squash Gratin

The following recipe was prepared during my International Chefs Dinner. You can read about it and check out the other recipes that were made for the event HERE.

Butternut Squash Gratin

shared at the event by Laura

recipe courtesy of Jacques Pepin

1 large butternut squash (3 1/4 pounds), peeled and seeded (2 1/2 pounds)

1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Cut off and discard the stem of the squash, then cut the squash into two pieces by cutting through it horizontally at the bottom of the neck. This will make it easier to peel.

Peel the cylindrical neck lengthwise, removing enough skin so that the orange flesh underneath is revealed. (Under the outer skin there is a layer of green, which should be removed.) Peel the round part of the squash by cutting around it in a spiral fashion with a sharp knife; it is easier to peel a round object in this manner. Cut the rounded part in half lengthwise, and, using a spoon, scoop out the seeds. Then cut the squash into 1/8-to-1/4-inch slices either with a knife or in a food processor fitted with the slicing blade.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the squash slices in a large saucepan, cover them with water, and bring to a boil. Boil over high heat for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, then drain in a colander. The pieces will break a little in cooking. Arrange pieces in a gratin dish, and sprinkle with the salt and pepper. Pour on the cream, and stir gently with a fork to distribute the additions properly. Cover with the cheese, and bake for about 30 minutes.

At serving time, brown the top of the gratin by placing it under a hot broiler for 4 to 5 minutes. Serve immediately.

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