A Detoxing Meal

This weekend, my best friend and her husband visited from Connecticut. The weekend was perfect! We laughed. We shopped. We drank ALOT. We ate even more. From the moment they arrived until minutes before they departed -- we ate.

Cambozola cheese and lemon crisps on Thursday evening. Friday morning began with fresh bagels and homemade vegetable cream cheese (a favorite of my friend's husband). Took a few deep breaths before lunchtime and made our way over to what probably is the BEST hamburger I've ever eaten at, Ballard's, Lunchbox Laboratory. I don't often make such strong claims, but ask any hamburger-loving Seattleite and I bet they feel the same. I'm barely finishing my 1/4 pound (perfectly grilled) burger, smothered with carmelized balsamic onions and gorgonzola and complemented by rosemary salted tater tots and I'm thinking "I can not possibly eat another bite of food." Ummmm.....BIG FAT LIE! Because, with dinner came lots of wine, roasted tomatoes with balsamic syrup and goat cheese, a butternut squash and carmelized onion galette, sprinkled with aged blue cheese, roasted garlic hummus and other small bites. The main dish, a fantastic one-pot meal -- Mixed Seafood, Chicken and Sausage Paella. Dessert -- like there was any room for that (but we managed to make room) -- was homemade chocolate peanut butter cups and hazelnut tofee.

We didn't disappoint on Saturday evening either. Dinner at Quinn's on Capitol Hill was, in a word, AMAZING! Delicate french fries, dressed with demi-glace and oozy fontina, salt cod fritters, foie gras, oxtail, escargot, pork ribs, goat, crispy chicken...and the list continues. Oh, and ridiculous amounts of liquor. The end to a perfect evening -- watched one of the most hilarious (high levels of adult comedy) shows currently on the TV roster, "The League." (Discovered last night that the entire first season is On Demand.)

Skip ahead to yesterday (Monday). Friends are back home in Connecticut. And, with a weekend's worth of decadent food and drink behind me, a cleansing, healthy, butternut squash soup seems in order.

Curried Apple Butternut Squash Soup

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, diced
1 tablespoon mild curry powder
2 pounds butternut squash, roasted (recipe below)
2 cups chicken broth or stock
1 cup apple juice
salt to taste
handful of chopped cilantro

Saute the onions and curry powder in a large pot, until onions are soft and transluscent. Stir occasionally, scraping the bottom of the pot.

With a spoon, scoop out the flesh from the roasted squash and place in pot with sauteed onions. Stir to blend all ingredients. Pour in 1 cup of broth and the apple juice and bring to a boil. Simmer for 20-25 minutes.

Using a food processor or hand blender, puree the soup to the consistency you like. Add the remaining  broth if necessary. Place back on the stove and simmer for a few more minutes. Sprinkle with chopped cilantro.

To make a full meal, I usually cut up chicken sausage and add some grated parmesan, goat or blue cheese to the top. Mmmmmmm.

Roasted Butternut Squash

2 pound butternut squash
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt/pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut squash in half vertically. Drizzle each half with olive oil and sprinkle with salt/pepper. Place cut side down on a baking sheet. Roast about 25 minutes, or until a knife can slide easily thru the flesh of the squash.

I apologize for not sharing a photo. The soup is delicious, but it just doesn't photograph well.