I have three different cookbooks with the same recipe: Squash soup. These three cookbook writers couldn’t be more different. If faced with the spoils of each other’s recipes, they would probably turn up their noses and leave their plates untouched. But they all say, basically, the same thing about squash: It’s just sooo delicious! All you need to do is mash it with some water and put a little salt on top! And it’s completely legal to call an unseasoned mashed vegetable a soup! So…happy dinner, folks.
I should’ve known better. But I bought a squash from a little stand for maybe two dollars and after I hacked it into messy squash bits, I felt compelled to turn it into food. So I tried one of these infamous squash and water soups and guess what it tasted like? Watered down squash! Yum?
I decided to tart it up with some spices and toppings, and it actually turned out delicious. I think the message from my cookbook trio is solid: If you like a vegetable SO MUCH that you can eat it plain and enjoy it, then go for it. Squash is not my vegetable, but I could eat steamed greens all day. But listen: I’ll never lie to you and pretend it’s a soup. Or a meal. Here’s a real meal though…happy dinner!
Spicy Kobucha Squash Soup
- 1 Kobucha squash, chopped into 2 inch pieces
- 2 cups of vegetable broth
- 1 cup water
- 3 tbsp. light miso
- 2 tbsp. ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp. tumeric
- 1 tbsp. cumin
- 1 tsp. smoked paprika
- 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp. dried coriander
- 1 onion
- 2 tbsp. parmesan cheese
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Combine vegetable broth, cubed kobucha squash, and water in a large pot; bring to a boil, then let simmer for 20 minutes. Mash the squash in the pot and whisk in miso paste and ginger. Add in turmeric, cumin, smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, and dried coriander. Simmer for 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.
In a separate covered pot, carmalize an onion in a teaspoon of olive oil, with a sprinkling of salt.
Ladle soup into bowls. Top with caramelized onion, parsley, and Parmesan cheese.
