Healthy Butternut Squash Soup

I promised to post my recipe for Butternut Squash Soup, and I keep my promises. Kindly overlook the fact that I am delivering on this promise approximately one month late. Hey, you know how it is. Life gets a little insane when you're working full time, being a wife, raising a child, AND Christmas shopping for nine thousand family members. Alas, without further delay, I give you....THE Butternut Squash Soup Recipe.


Ingredients
1 (2 to 3 pound) butternut squash
2 tablespoons butter
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
6 cups chicken stock (please, for the love of all that is holy, get the organic, low-sodium kind)
Nutmeg to taste
Ginger to taste
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Peel the squash. To make it easier, pop it in the microwave for a minute...that should soften the skin sufficiently. (Or, do like I did this time and leave the skin on! Shhh...it's our little secret. Nobody will ever notice.) Cut squash into 1-inch chunks. In a big pot (I use my big red Martha Stewart cast iron pot, which I LOVE) melt the butter. Add onion and cook until soft and translucent. Add squash, carrot, celery and chicken stock. Bring to a simmer and cook until squash is squishy, about 20 minutes. In batches, transfer soup to a blender and blend until smooth. (Or if you're lucky and own an immersion blender, just go to town right there in the big pot.) Return blended squash to pot. Stir and season with nutmeg, ginger, salt, and pepper. 

I like to serve it up in bowls with a dollop of low fat sour cream or just the tiniest swirl of heavy cream. It gives it the most luxurious texture! Looks and tastes so fancy, but is so easy and super healthy.