Makes 3 appetizer portions or 12 – 14 shooters
1 pound butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cubed (20 oz package from Trader Joe’s)
1 firm ripe Anjou pear, peeled and quartered
2 large shallots, peeled and halved
2 TB vegetable oil
½ tsp sea salt
¼ tsp freshly ground pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/8 tsp ground ginger
½ tsp garam masala or curry powder
2 TB dry white wine
2 ½ cups low sodium chicken broth
1 TB heavy cream
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Gently toss first 3 ingredients with oil; season with sea salt and pepper, and place in a rimmed baking pan. Bake 35 minutes or until tender and browned. Add garlic, ginger, and garam masala and toss well. Bake 5 more minutes.
Pour wine over the squash mixture and stir to deglaze the pan. Let stand 10 minutes. Transfer to a blender, add broth and puree until smooth. (For smoothest texture, press squash puree through a wire-mesh strainer, discarding solids.)
Transfer puree to a large saucepan, and stir in cream. Cook over medium heat 3 – 5 minutes or until heated through. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Ladle into small glasses.
** Garam Masala is a ground spice blend from Indian, Pakistan and South Asian cuisines. It is primarily made of: cumin, coriander, cardamom, cinnamon, pepper, cloves and nutmeg.
SERVING - I serve the soup in shooter glasses but any small cup will do!
Here is the link to what I have:
Glass Shooter
Recipe adapted from myrecipes.com