Roasted delicata squash soup

This was really good! While I have a different vegan recipe , I like this one better. It's based on the recipe I use for clam chowder , corn chowder and potato leek soup .

Serves 2, multiply as necessary.

1 delicata squash, diced and roasted onion, finely diced carrot, finely diced celery, finely diced 1 clove garlic, minced 1/2 slice of bacon, finely diced 1/2 tbsp. butter olive oil 2 tbsp. flour (I used all-purpose unbleached white flour) 12 oz. chicken stock 4 oz. heavy cream salt freshly ground white pepper Tabasco sauce (optional)

Preheat the oven to 400°F Half the squash and remove the seeds and stringy stuff from the middle. Peel and dice. In a bowl, season with salt, freshly ground pepper and olive oil, toss to coat, and put on a sheet pan. The beets and Brussels sprouts are for a different recipe!

Roast for 30 minutes at 400°F, stirring once at 15 minutes.

Here are the rest of the ingredients. There aren't precise measurements because it doesn't entirely matter. You could even leave one or more out of you had to.

I added a half slice of frozen pre-cooked bacon , but you could omit it for a vegetarian version.

Also, I used 1 tbsp. of More Than Gourmet chicken stock concentrate and 12 oz. of boiling water to make the stock. You could use broth or stock from a container or can, homemade, or even use plain water. And, of course you could use vegetable stock for a vegetarian version.

Add the butter and olive oil to the pan you'll be making the soup in. Add the onion, carrot and celery and cook until the onion is translucent.

Add the garlic and bacon and cook for a few minutes.

Add 2 tbsp. flour to make a roux. Cook over low heat for 5 minutes.

Add the stock and roasted squash and bring to a boil.

Reduce the heat to simmer and cook for 15 minutes.

Once fully cooked, purée the soup. I used a stick blender which is easier to clean than the food processor. It doesn't make the soup quite as smooth, but I like having a few little bits of identifiable vegetable. You could use a blender or food processor of course.

Add the cream and simmer. Add salt, freshly ground white pepper and Tabasco sauce (optional).

It's good with homemade ciabatta bread with fleur de sel and olive oil (pictured above).

I vacuum sealed and froze the second serving. I'm not positive it will freeze well, but we'll find out!