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The butternut squash I had chosen for the Curried Butternut Squash Soup was on the large size. I wanted to make sure I had enough for what the recipe called for - ¾ lb, or 12 oz. I ended up having extra so I decided to roast it with some basic olive oil, salt and pepper, and I am glad I did! Despite following the ingredient quantities of the recipe, the resulting pureed soup was much thinner than desired and needed additional squash puree to thicken it up. The roasted flavor of the extra squash that I made added a nice depth to the final product and helped balance the pungent fresh ginger and garlic spicey-ness. The result was a perfectly thickened pureed soup full of flavor. The garnishes of greek yogurt, paprika, olive oil, and green onion really tied all the flavors together. The crunch of the green onion gave a nice texture component to the creaminess of the soup. The only possible ingredient that could have been allergy-related was the coconut milk which can be easily substituted for another plant milk and maintain the vegan dynamic of this delicious soup.  I didn’t have tahini on-hand so I substituted for cashew butter, which I ended up making myself (it was very easy and came out super creamy and tasty!).
I also had brown lentils on-hand so opted to use those versus purchasing black. Although using seasonal ingredients provides optimal nutrients, it has been quite dreary here in Sacramento and having a dash of color and a “taste of summer” sounded delightful so I chose to create the spring/summer version. I also had about 2 pounds of tomatoes that I needed to utilize so the Tomato & Cucumber salad component ushered the perfect opportunity. Since this delicious dish is comprised of several components, planning your attack will be fruitful! I started with the pickling so the veggies would have sufficient time to marinade and create a really robust, flavorful outcome. Then I made the salads - Quinoa Herb and Tomato & Cucumber - also so the flavors would have time to meld together and thoroughly combine. I then started the lentils and while they simmered I began making my cashew butter which I used as substitute for the tahini. While the cooked lentils were resting/cooling, I finished my cashew butter and was then able to create the Turmeric Tahini Sauce. I wanted to give the sauce time to set and let all flavors incorporate. Researching alternatives and substitutions can prove tasty and economically beneficial! I do not usually have tahini on-hand so I was searching for the best substitute, especially after Chef Guerra mentioned the possibility and noted macadamia nuts. I found that cashew butter is a close runner up and I had sufficient stock of cashews in-house. Additionally, I knew I would use cashew butter much more readily than tahini so it made sense, financially and inventory-wise, to go this route. I located a recipe online to make the butter at home and the process was surprisingly simple, the food processor did all the work! The most tedious part was scrapping all the butter out of the bowl and into an airtight container. What a delicious and creamy product resulted, I don’t know that I will ever buy pre-made nut butters again! I really enjoyed the ingredient control versus buying store-made, and the recipe I found gave ideas to add different spices and inclusions like cinnamon, maple syrup, or a flavorful extract like vanilla. |
AuthorFood is medicine, in it's raw form. What we eat, becomes us, on a cellular level. The building blocks of nutrients we consume today will generate the cells in which nourish us tomorrow. Don't just taste the rainbow, EAT the rainbow. Archives
October 2024
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