Missing my oven and thinking of mom.

Tonight we have the Elders over for dinner.  We have awesome elders- Elder Sosa and Elder Brandenberg, from Mexico and Netherlands respectively.  Elder Sosa is going home next week and we will sorely miss him.   

I am actually missing my oven. My mom would be amazed at this as she could never keep me in the kitchen to learn a thing.  I was always sneaking off to.. well, do anything that didn't resemble cooking, sewing, or whatever craft project she was into at that moment.  It's too bad mom is gone as she would have loved Kellie, who loves to do all those things. Who would have thought I'd miss my oven and my mom in the same thought. 

Cookies, banana bread, squash soup and corn bread.  I can tell when the season starts to change. Home and hearth beckon me.

I saw this recipe and when I have my oven back, this is near the top of my list to make.  

Roasted Garlic and Butternut Squash Soup
inspired by Bride & Groom First and Forever Cookbook

3½ cups roasted butternut squash, about 3 lbs.
2 heads of garlic
Olive oil, salt and pepper

1 can of evaporated milk (or ½ can sweetened condensed milk)
6 or so shallots, chopped (filling at least a half cup)
Olive oil
4 cups of chicken/veggie/any other kind of broth, plus more as desired
Salt and pepper

A few dollops of sour cream
milk


For soup:
Skin the garlic heads until you get most of the outer skins off. Slice off the tops of the cloves so just the tips are exposed.
Set in a small ramekin or pan, drizzle with olive oil, dash with pepper and cover with foil.











Cut the squash “hot dog style” (lengthwise), spoon out the seeds, brush with olive oil and dash with salt and pepper. Roast flesh side down alongside the garlic in a 375° F oven for an hour.
















While the squash and garlic are roasting, drizzle some oil (about a Tablespoon) into a pan. Sauté the shallots for a few minutes until they get soft; don’t let them change color.


When the squash are cooled enough, peel off the skins and measure out 3½ cups of the flesh for the soup. You can freeze/refrigerate the rest for another time.


Set a pot on the stove top, set to low heat.


In a blender or food processor add in half the squash, half the shallots, half the milk, half the broth and one head of garlic (by squeezing out the roasted cloves and throwing away the skins).


Blend until smooth, then pour into the warm pot. Repeat with the other half of the ingredients and heat to desired temperature. Of course, if all the ingredients fit in your blender type gadget there's no reason to do it half-sies.
This is where you can either add more broth or milk to get the soup to your desired consistency and taste.


Add salt and pepper to taste.






For sour cream hearts:
Combine sour cream and however much milk you want to thin out the cream to desired consistency. Dollop into soup and run a toothpick through the drops for a heart shape (this is totally from the cookbook).


This is so yummy with homemade bread, crackers, or whatever you have to dip into soup.


For Presentation: Dollop the hearts in and sprinkle with some nutmeg.



I can't wait to eat this!