Butternut squash soup with shrimp is my new favorite soup. I made it two weeks ago when it was a little less than 100 degrees outside. Then we ate it the next day cold because the weather was so hot and the thought of putting anything warm in our mouth just sounded unappetizing.
Luckily the soup tasted really good cold, refreshing even.
This weekend it was more on the chilly side so we had the rest of the soup warmed up with fresh biscuits. I had saved some for my friends who were coming from out of town.
The soup was a success. Everyone loved it minus my Enzo.
Butternut squash and I developed a tight relationship 4 yeas ago when Enzo started eating solids. Our daily ritual consisted of
going to Foodland, the market by our home in Hawaii, and picking out a small butternut squash together. Every day, except for Sundays when the whole town was off at church and the market was closed, I would put him in his stroller and make my way to Foodland in the sticky heat of Hawaii. Then we would come home and I would put him down for his morning nap, make my way to our poorly ventilated kitchen, and cook butternut squash for my baby boy.
I remember his skin looking sort of orange around that time it radiated health and nutrition. Every day I would labor over his meal that consisted of fresh vegetables, tofu, whole grains, no salt no sugar. Then I would make something else for Christian and I, that may not have been as healthy and definitely was loaded with salt. I love salt.
Enzo ate healthy but he learned that there was a special meal made just for him. Now he demands quesadillas, a "special meal", made just for him when he doesn't want to eat what we make which is often. This back and forth is exhausting.
I decided to do things differently second time around. When baby Maria was starting solids I would puree whatever it was we were eating, no mater how much salt or sugar I had put in it. I wanted her to learn to eat what we ate.
She eats shrimp.
Then asks for more.
She eats butternut squash.
Then asks for more.
She seriously eats eveything.
In my attempt to be a stellar mom with Enzo I ended up creating a picky eater. I am now convinced that kids need to learn to eat what the rest of the family eats. Yes, children should eat healthy meals which means that parents should eat healthy meals. So now I feed baby Maria exactly what I eat. If I'm eating deep fried mozzarella balls than she's getting deep fried mozzarella balls. This is good. Very good. It forces me to evaluate what I eat as well. Maybe I shouldn't deep fry as much as I do.
This soup was something I felt good about. It was healthy and hearty, tangy and savory, it was so good.
I really wish Enzo would of taken a bite.
sigh....
He said he was being nice and leaving plenty for his little sis.
At least he has charity going for him.
Butternut Squash Soup with Shrimp
(Printable version)
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion finely shopped
- 1 leek, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
- 2 garlic cloves
- 14 oz. can chopped tomatoes in juice
- 3 small potatoes diced
- 1 medium butternut squash cubed
- 3 cups water
- 4 cups vegetable stock
- 14 oz. can mixed beans drained and rinsed
- 1 lbs medium sized frozen shrimp
- Heat the oil in a large sauce-pan over medium head. Add the onions, leek, and garlic and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally until slightly softened.
- Add the tomatoes, potatoes, butternut squash, water, and stock.
- Bring to a boil.
- Stir in the beans and season with salt and pepper.
- Simmer for 40 minutes then add the frozen shrimp and simmer for an additional 10 minutes.
enjoy!
