I don’t know why, but when we pick our own apples we don’t stop until we can’t possibly carry any more. What is it about picking your own fruit that makes you feel like you are at an all-you-can-eat buffet? Does any family really need 30 pounds of apples? If you are trying to use up the apples you picked this year and are tired of making applesauce, here’s a tip. Remember that apples can be very versatile, and can easily find their way into many dishes – and not just desserts. Here, I added some tart apples (not sure what kind, the trees in the orchard were not labeled) to a standard butternut squash soup. They added acidity and brightness to what can sometimes be a rather heavy dish. Perfect for an early autumn day when the air is just starting to get a chill.
Butternut Squash Soup with Apples (Serves 4-6)
3 Tablespoons Butter
1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
3 slices of fresh ginger
1 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded and chopped
2-3 tart apples, peeled, seeded and chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 sprigs of fresh thyme
1 sprig of fresh rosemary
4 cups chicken stock
Salt and Pepper to taste
Melt the butter over medium heat in a large soup pot. Add the onion and ginger, cook and stir for several minutes until the onion has softened. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, until the squash is fully cooked. Remove from the heat and allow to cool for about 10 minutes. Remove the herb sprigs and ginger slices. Puree the soup until completely smooth in the pot with a hand-held immersion blender (or in batches in a regular blender or food processor). Reheat the soup when ready to serve.
Miam !
Apple are also very good in green peas soup !
apples are also very good in “pâte de fruit” – don’t know the words in english. Nature or aromatised (cinnamon, ginger, …)
I am so making this! many thanks for posting it!
Mark, love your recipes — I’m going to try this tonight!
Woah. Apples in butternut squash soup? You just blew my mind.
picking your own apples…..yes, we have a lug box in the garage waiting for inspiration! Thank you Mark! Soup for dinner!
I love it…”the trees in the orchard were not labelled”…..lol. 🙂
I threw an extra “l” in there for good measure. Thanks spellcheck. 😉
SO funny because it’s true – why do we need so many apples, blueberries, etc.
I just got a butternut squash last night so will definitely be making this on Saturday! Thanks
it looks delicious! im going to try this recipe tonight!!
Super recipe. I never thought of putting apple into butternut squash soup!
Gorgeous — thanks for posting. Am going to take this brilliant suggestion and make asap 🙂
I’ve been on such a soup kick lately and I haven’t had butternut yet this season — I think I need to try this one! Last year I was making an apple and parsnip soup that really was great — apple in soup really gives an extra ‘something’….. Speaking of apples, I wrote about all things applelicious today! You might like some of the recipes!
http://www.juliasbookbag.com/2011/10/appley-dappley.html
this looks absolutely delicious. i made a carrot apple soup last week and it was fantastic. i can only imagine how good the apples are with the butternut!
You can use apple for japanese curry too 🙂
Thanks, Mark. I not only love butternut squash but also love to apple-ize my soups, so this has to be a great soup.
Just made this for dinner with homemade focaccia – delicious recipe! I decided to omit the ginger because I didn’t have any and I roasted the carrots and squash…I will be making this again! Thanks Mark.
I always put apples and curry in my squash soup… and a bit of cider in place of stock. Yum! Here is another great use for apples in a savory dish that I couldn’t believe I had never heard of. It is amazing:
http://www.girlsgonechild.net/2010/09/eat-well-apple-risotto-with-www.html
Apple risotto!!!
this is my favorite soup this time of year. i love it with a touch of curry powder.
Mark, what a lovely soup! Perfect for Fall 🙂 We recently went to an apple farm here in Toronto, Ontario and we have lots of leftover apples that I am running out of ideas to make with. I’ve made (and blogged about) apple loaf, apple cheddar muffins, red velvet apple cupcakes…but I really like this butternut squash and apple soup!