Roasted Butternut Squash and Apple Soup (with a creamy flare from feta)

So my rooms...Renee and Steph...ventured out apple pickin' one fine Massachusetts day...the result... bushels and bushels of apples. This recipe sprouted out of our need to use up these delicious fruits and warm our little California bodies, shocked by the Massachusetts weather...

Ingredients:

1 Butternut Squash peeled and chopped (about 2 cups)

1 Medium Red Onion chopped (about 3/4 cup)

2 Medium seasonal apples (chopped, peeling is not necessary plus you get more fiber!)

1 cup chopped carrots

2 cups vegetable stock (a bit more depending on the size of squash, you want the liquids to just cover the veggies in the pot)

2 cups water

1 Tbs. Olive Oil

1 1/2 tsps. cinnamon (more if desired)

Salt and pepper to taste.

Directions:

1. In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat.

2. Add the butternut squash, onion, and carrots. Stir and caramelize for about 5 minutes.

3. Add chopped apples and stir to combine.

4. Add water, stock, salt and pepper, and cinnamon. Simmer for about 30 minutes. (To determine if ready, test to see if the carrots are tender).

5. In batches,puree the soup in a food processor to make a thick and creamy puree. On the last batch to puree, add the 1/2 cup feta and blend until creamy. Stir into the rest of the soup.

6. Return to soup pot and keep warm on stove.

To Serve:

Pour soup into bowls and garnish with a sprinkling of cinnamon and a bit of crumbled feta. Serve with panini dunkers, such as pear and brie paninis toasted on whole wheat bread.

This tastes like fall in a bowl! :)

Difficulty?
Kelly's Kut Rating: Minor injuries, a very simple recipe, but chopping up butternut squash can sometimes be a task.

Taste? Renee's Mmmmm-gasm Scale: The pairing of the creamy sweet and savory soup with the crunchy and gooey panini satisfied my taste buds, so much so that it was X-rated. It delivered 9,999 consecutive food orgasms. (I don't think any man could beat this, friends.)

Looks?

Steph's Hotty Hottness Rating: The pictures say it all. What a beautiful dinner! The bright orange of the squash mimics the leaves of the New England autumn outside.