Recipe #209: Thai Butternut Soup

It's been too long since my last post!  Lately, I've been making my old standby meals for the most part.  I had time today to look through my neglected issues of Cooking Light magazine, and I knew I had to make this!  Very rich and filling, and I'm glad I have plenty of leftovers.  I used fresh squash instead of frozen, which required five more minutes of simmering.

Ingredients

• 
  1 teaspoon canola oil
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 2 1/2 teaspoons red curry paste
• 1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh garlic
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
• 1 cup fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth 
• 2 teaspoons brown sugar
• 2 (12-ounce) packages frozen pureed butternut squash  (OR 4 cups cubed fresh butternut squash)
• 1 (14-ounce) can light coconut milk
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fish sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup chopped unsalted, dry-roasted peanuts
• 1/4 cup cilantro leaves
• 1 lime, cut into 8 wedges

• Preparation

  1. 1. Heat a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add oil; swirl to coat. Add onion; sauté 3 minutes. Add curry paste, garlic, and ginger; sauté 45 seconds, stirring constantly.
  2. 2. Add broth and next 5 ingredients (through salt); cover. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes, stirring frequently. (Simmer an additional 5 minutes if using fresh squash)  Place half of squash mixture in a blender. Remove center piece of blender lid (to allow steam to escape); secure blender lid on blender. Place a clean towel over opening in blender lid (to avoid splatters). Blend until smooth. Pour into a large bowl. Repeat procedure with remaining squash mixture. Spoon about 1 cup soup into each of 4 bowls; top with 2 tablespoons peanuts and 1 tablespoon cilantro. Serve with lime wedges.