Curried Butternut Squash and Carrot Soup with Peanut Butter

I see spring around the corner so I thought I should catch up on my winter soups that I've made, photographed, and haven't yet posted.  I'm behind on everything.

I was looking for some inspiration for some soup with a bit of kick.This is a uniquely flavorful soup that everyone seemed to really enjoy. It's different, hearty, and simply delicious.

Adapted from Sing for Your Supper.

Ingredients and Method:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 butternut squash, peeled and chopped
6 carrots, washed and chopped
1 sweet potato, peeled and chopped
1 onion, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon ginger, minced
6 cups chicken broth
1 teaspoon tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 pinch cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
heaping 1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
1/3 cup chopped cilantro, and a bit for garnish
salt and pepper to taste

First a note on butternut squash. I find it a pain to peel and cut up the squash. So what I do is, is pierce it several times. and microwave for 8 minutes until it begins to soften. It is then much easier to cut it open, cut into manageable sized chunks, and the the thick tough skin is easy to just cut off with a knife.

Heat oil in your dutch oven or heavy duty pot. Saute garlic, onion, and ginger until onions are softened and transluscent. Add the vegetables and chicken broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low simmer, and cook, stirring occasionally,  until vegetables are soft, about 45 minutes. (Conversely, this is a perfect pressure cooker soup also.  Saute onions, garlic, etc.  in the pressure cooker, add vegetables and chicken broth and heat under pressure for 12 minutes. Let pressure reduce naturally.)

Add tomato paste, cumin, cayenne pepper, curry powder and cilantro. Stir spices in, and then, using a hand blender, or a regular blender, blend soup mixture until smooth.

Stir in peanut butter.

Salt and pepper to taste.  Serve with cilantro as a garnish. (I like to add a small dollop of sour cream also)

 Enjoy!