Autumn Squash Soup, Slightly Adapted from Paula Wolfert’s reicpe in The Cooking Of Southwest France
Serves 4-6 as a main course, or 2 with ample leftovers
2 pounds butternut, Kabocha, acorn, or Red Kuri squash
4 cups chicken stock (homemade or best store bought) (See note)
1/2 cup onion, chopped
3 large garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons duck fat or butter
1/2 pound russet or Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 small garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
salt and black pepper
1 cup heavy cream, milk, or half and half
generous pinch hot paprika or chili flakes (optional, but the soup is pretty bland without it.)
For the topping
6 ounces thick-cut bacon, ham, or pancetta, sliced into batons
1 small garlic clove, halved
sliced baguette
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Slice your squash in half and place it, cut sides face down, on a baking sheet lined with parchment or aluminum foil. Roast for 45 minutes to an hour, until squash is completely soft and giving. Remove from oven and allow to cool.
While the squash roasts, heat the olive oil and 1 tablespoon duck fat in a 4-5 quart soup pot. Add potatoes, onion, and the garlic cloves. Cook over medium heat until the vegetables soften. Do not allow to brown. Add the chicken broth and simmer for 30 minutes.
Returning to the squash: using a large spoon, scoop out the seeds and strings. Scrape flesh free of peel.
Now it’s time to blend the soup. Whether you use a blender, food processor, immersion blender, or potato masher, remember at all times that the soup is hot. Be careful. (I was being so careful that there are no photos of this maneuver.) If you have an immersion blender, remove the soup from the heat. Carefully add the squash and puree. If you have a blender or food processor, blend in batches, slowly and carefully.
Once the squash is fully blended, return it to the pot. Stir in the cream.Taste for seasoning; the soup will need it. Add salt and black pepper to taste. Add the hot paprika, chili flakes, or, as Wolfert does, piment d’Espelette Reheat gently.
To make the optional, calorific, undeniably delish topping:
In a small frying pan, heat the remaining duck fat or butter. Now add your sliced bacon, ham, or pancetta and fry until crisp.
Slice a baguette into thin rounds and rub the slices with a garlic clove. Wolfert crisps the slices in the fat in the frying pan. I do not; the choice is yours.
Serve the soup in deep bowls. The baguette and bacon can be strewn atop the soup or served on the side. You can also bring out the cheese biscuits.
Notes: You can use any kind of light poultry or vegetable stock for this soup. Avoid fish, pork, or beef stocks, which will clash disastrously with the squash flavor.
You can also skip the topping entirely and serve this with just bread–it’s wonderful.