Silky Squash & Apple Soup

from Meredith McCarty

Makes 4 servings or 4 cups

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 onions or white part of 2 leeks
1 rib celery
1 pound delicata squash or a combination (buttercup, acorn, butternut), about 2 1/2 cups, peeled and seeded
1 large apple (ie. Granny Smith), 1/2 pound, peeled and cored
1 1/2 cups water or vegetable broth
1/2 cup apple cider
1 tablespoon white miso
1 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon cardamom
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon curry
1/2 teaspoon cumin powder
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg for garnish
1/4 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped for garnish
1 tablespoon chives, cut in 3-inch lengths for garnish

1. Slice produce.
2. In a large pot, heat oil and saute onion (or leek) and celery until soft. Add squash, apple, water and cider. Bring to boil, then turn heat down to slow-boil covered until soft, about 10 minutes.
Or, to avoid having to cut the squash and to concentrate the sweet taste, bake whole squash on a dry baking sheet at 400 or 450 degrees until completely soft when pierced with a small knife, about an hour. Peel, seed and puree with other ingredients.
3. Transfer solids to food processor and puree with remaining ingredients. Add liquid gradually to texture desired, continuing to blend. Return soup to pot and heat through to marry flavors. Garnish by sprinkling nutmeg and nuts over surface and placing chives crossing each other in middle.

Meredith McCarty has been a natural foods chef and instructor for more than twenty years. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. Her previous books are American Macrobiotic Cuisine and Fresh from a Vegetarian Kitchen.