½ cup white wine (if using white wine vinegar use only ¼ cup)
olive oil
salt & pepper
pepitas, for garnish (or any other seed you like)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 400˚F. Cut squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Lay cut-side up on a baking sheet and bake for about 45 minutes (until the flesh is easily pierced).
Peel the garlic cloves, wrap in foil, and bake for about 30 minutes, until completely soft. Set aside.
When squash is cool enough to handle, scoop out the flesh and set aside.
Roughly dice the onion. Heat a tbl of oil in a large pot and add in the onion; season with a tsp of salt to start getting the moisture out and sauté until translucent. Deglaze with the white wine, scraping the bottom to get up all those caramelized brown bits.
If you have an emersion blender: add the butternut, garlic, and 10 cups of water directly to the pot. Bring to a boil and let simmer for 20 minutes. Puree with emersion blender until smooth.
If you are using a food processor: in two batches puree the squash, garlic, and onion with a few cups of water and add back to the pot. Bring to a boil and let simmer for 20 minutes.
If you would like to thin it out a bit, whisk in remaining 1-2 cups of water.
Once everything is blended, taste it to see what it needs. Hint: it will definitely need more salt and pepper – I like a lot of black pepper to counteract the natural sweetness of the squash – salt is tricky because it will seem like you are adding a TON but there is a tipping point at which the salt all of a sudden brings out all the other flavors before it becomes “salty” – so add slowly and taste often.
To garnish I like to add some roasted pepitas: with the oven at 400˚F, toss a cup of pepitas with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and roast for 5-7 minutes. Keep a close eye on these, give them a toss if the outer edge is cooking faster.
Recipe by Eat Some Wear Some at https://eatsomewearsome.com/butternut-squash-and-roasted-garlic-soup/