I could easily become a vegetarian with these two dishes! Delicious. Delightfully spicy. Clean and healthy. Hands down winners for warming the mind, body and soul.
The warming comes from the carminative, Indian spices that I enjoy the most and used a little extra to make the difference. The first was a plain (but very good) Butternut Squash Apple soup that I doctored – adding many more pinches of flavor and spice than what was called for in the original Simply Recipes Food & Cooking Blog preparation – making it a hearty, wholesome and “mmmhmm good-er” than Campbells and ten times better than any SoupMan recipe. The second was prepared exactly as Martha Schulman, NYT, Recipes for Health Editor, designed. It was the most satisifying meal I think I have ever had, or at least made in my own kitchen. Every spoonful was worth every second of preparation required. I enjoyed the first bowl watching Mitt Romney go down in flames on Election night 2012. I ate the second bowl of Spicy Butternut Squash soup for lunch and Martha’s recipe for dinner, the next day, thereby being inspired to share the story and these two recipes, albeit a little late at this post writing.
The image caught my eye, the ingredients spoke to me and the flavors will make it a regular item in my healthy diet. Particularly during colder weather this is a “must.” You can make enough and do what I did, freeze the rest for a later occassion.
Click here for the Chickpeas with Couscous Recipe.
BTW, I did splurge a little on carbs and made some good, old-fashioned southern cornbread to eat with it.
Now, as for the doctoring performed on the Butternut Squash Soup. The amount of spice you use is certainly a matter of taste, however, carminative spices are the best and natural way to warm your inner soul and body without exercise. A bland soup can be magically changed with a sprinkle of red pepper flakes, ginger root and and clove. So much so, that I add a mix of coriander, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, cumin and black pepper to my oatmeal in the morning.
Imagine then the re-make of a plain Butternut Squash soup with that blend. I didn’t measure. I just used my spoon to taste for the corrections.
I used pinches and sprinkles of Red Chili Pepper Flakes, Black Peppercorns, Red Curry, Himalayan Sea Salt, Ground Cinnamon, Ground Nutmeg and topped the finished soup with a handful of pistachio nuts.
Sweet, simple and pure.
Delicious.
Click here for the Butternut Squash & Apple Soup and enjoy your own creation. Ten minutes of preparation and hours of wholesome nourishment.
Gina Jackson, is a classically trained Pilates Teacher and has been teaching along the Gold Coast of Hudson and Bergen County, NJ for the past fifteen+ years.
Certified by Power Pilates of New York, Gina has trained with Master Teachers Bob Liekens, Susan Moran and Brett Howard; loved workshop training with Cary Regan and Blossom Leilani-Crawford and has particularly enjoyed listening to the personal stories as told by Pilates Elders, Kathy Grant and Lolita San Miguel.
An active teacher and blogger, Gina manages a private personal training business supporting a myriad of clients, teaching all to honor their health, strength and life with the principles of Pilates at its core.