Hi everyone. Please click on the title of this post to read more. First, an announcement: I will be doing a FREE TBK presentation at the YMCA of Montclair on Park Street at 1PM this Saturday, Sept. 20th. They are having a Fitness Week Kickoff to help people eat 100 fewer calories a day and walk 2000 steps a day. It should be fun! Second, the above photo is Bridget Sarubin of www.babylovesdisco.com and myself at the Baby Loves Disco event in Montclair. Those colorful dips are my edamame, carrot and beet dips. Yum…
So, I was just thinking about sacrifices that we make every day to accomplish what we need/want to accomplish. For example, since my husband has a new job and leaves the house at 6:30AM, I need to be “on” by myself when the kids wake up at crazy early hours, hours so early, it would horrify you. For this reason, I have had to sacrifice watching Madmen with my beloved Jon Hamm when it comes on on Sunday nights at 10 and watch it on demand. Do you know what it is like knowing that I don’t get to see it as soon as it comes on? That, my friends, is a sacrifice in the truest sense.
Sacrifices, however, pay off. Because I go to bed earlier now, I don’t have as black circles under my eyes, just a mild shade of gray. I am also in a much better mood and am much more pleasant to be around. What sacrifices do the rest of us make with, oh, I don’t know, cooking? Maybe we can’t go to the gym as much , go out for coffee, go see a movie, read a book, take a shower, chat on the phone, volunteer as much at school, work as much as we do so we have the time to shop, prep,and cook homemade food for ourselves and our families. The pay off? We know exactly what is going into our food, we are helping to remain healthy in our home, we are hopefully supporting local vendors, we are nurturing ourselves and our families by giving them the gift of homemade food, we are modeling excellent cooking behaviors and we are saving a ton of money during these difficult economic times. Now that’s a big bang for your buck!
Please enjoy my delicious homemade butternut Squash Soup that was inspired by my sister Peggy’s assertion that maple syrup should be added to everything!
Alma’s Butternut Squash Soup:
1 Large butternut squash, cut into big chunks, placed on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet and roasted at 475 degrees until it is tender (about 45 minutes to an hour)
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth (more if needed if soup gets too thick)
2 TBS maple syrup
3 TBS sour cream
1/2 tsp crushed fresh rosemary
salt to taste
After squash is roasted, let it cool and peel off the skin. Put it into a large saucepan with broth and simmer for a few minutes. Add maple syrup, and rosemary and stir until well combined. Let cool. When cool, place in a blender or cuisinart or use a hand blender and blend until smooth. Then add sour cream and salt to taste. Enjoy!
2 Responses
Great post Alma!
I want to make the soup but I am wondering if you could save a ‘cooling” step by pureeing the squash after it cools the first time out of the oven and then add that puree to a pot with the broth…would that work?