Acorn Squash Kale Soup

It is so cold!  Soup time :)

Acorn squash is one of my favorite winter vegetables.  It has a hearty texture and tastes kind of sweet and nutty.  Also, squash last forever and do not need to be refrigerated, so I always have them in my vegetable/fruit basket ready to be cook whenever I am in the mood.  

As I drove home from work yesterday, shivering, all I could think of was how much I wanted acorn squash soup!  So, I stopped at the grocery store on the way home and picked up a few things.  I needed onions, vegetable stock (I usually use chicken bullion cubes, but I wanted to try something different), bacon for Mike, and then I splurged on a new item, tempeh bacon for me.  I used the tempeh bacon and acorn squash seeds as a garnish.  Real bacon is definitely better, but I am glad I tried it!  I also had gluten free pretzels nuggets I used as croutons.  To be honest, I tried a new recipe for gluten free pretzels this weekend and they turned out AWFUL.  They were mealy and tasted like crumbly, dry polenta.  But, I really do not like throwing away food, so I re-purposed them into croutons.  I cut them into pieces, drizzled them with olive oil and seasoning and toasted them for 5 minutes.  And, let me tell you, they tasted wayyyy better as croutons.  Do not worry, I will not be sharing that recipe ha.

Anyways, here is this hearty, warm soup recipe.  Enjoy and stay warm!

Acorn Squash Kale Soup

Ingredients

1. 1 medium acorn squash and seeds
2. 1 tbsp olive oil
3. 1 small onion
4. 3 stalks of celery
5. 1 tsp of ginger
6. 1/2 tsp of turmeric 
7. 1 tsp of garam masala
8. 1/2 tsp of red pepper flakes
9. 3 cups of vegetable broth (In the past I used chicken broth and liked it a lot better. It also gave the soup a brighter color.  But, that's just my suggestion)
10. 2 1/2 cups of kale
11. 2 strips of bacon (tempeh or pork)
12. Salt and pepper to taste... depends on which type of broth you use
13. Olive oil spray for roasted seeds

Directions

Soup

1. Cut acorn squash in half.  Scrap out seeds.  
2. Bake squash in oven at 350 degrees F for 30-40 minutes.  Until fork tender.
3. When cool peel off skin. 
4. Dice onion and celery.
5. Heat olive oil in large pot and add onion and celery.  Cook until caramelized.
6. Add seasonings: ginger, turmeric, garam masla, pepper flakes
7. Add half of the squash cubed and 2 cups of broth.
8. I used a hand blender to blenderize the squash, onion and celery until smooth.  If you do not have a blender you can skip this part.  Your soup will just be a little more chunky.
9. Then add the rest of squash cubed and 1 cup of broth.  Let soup come to a boil.
10. Then add kale.  Make sure to take off the stems and cut the kale into bite size pieces.  Let soup come back to a boil.

Garnishes

Roasted Seeds

1. Clean seeds in strainer and let dry on cloth for 2 hours
2. When seeds dry. Spray with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper (or whatever seasonings you like).  
3. Spread seeds out on pan and bake at 350 degrees F for 30-40 minutes.  At the 20 minute mark, shake them around and listen for popping.  If they pop they're done :)

Crispy Bacon

1. Heat pan to high.
2. Cut bacon into 1 inch pieces and cook in pan until crispy

** I have a great candied bacon recipe I will share soon!

Garam Masala Some Extra Nutrition Information 

Garam Masla is a blend of ground spices common in Indian cuisine.  The mix changes a little based on the Indian region, but usually it is made of cumin, coriander, cardamom, pepper, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg in a bowl.  In general, spices are a better option than sauces filled of fat and sodium.

Spices can also provide some health benefits.  Cardamom has been used in folk medicine as a natural antimicrobial for foodborne bacteria for years (1). For my medical school friends... did you know cardamom has shown antibacterial activity against E. coli, Staph aureus, Bacillus cereus, Listeria, H. pylori and more?  I absolutely would not recommend these spices in place of antibiotics, but come on, that is cool!  It has also shown some anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties (2) in animal models.  

Okay, I think that is enough of me being my nutrition nerd self.  Have a lovely day and remember to spice it up... get it :) haha!