How to Make The Emeril Lagasse Butternut Squash Soup Recipe at Home
The Emeril Lagasse Butternut Squash Soup Recipe is something that you can make at home. It’s a way to impress that certain someone or amaze at dinner parties. It can make a significant amount at a time, and it’s surprisingly easy to make. Learning about the steps and how to find the right ingredients will ensure that the recipe is a success inside your home kitchen.
The Recipe for the Emeril Lagasse Roasted Butternut Squash Soup
The Emerils.com website shares the full recipe for the butternut squash soup.
You will need to start by acquiring all of the ingredients, including:
- 4 pounds of butternut squash
- Olive oil
- Salt
- Pepper
- Butter
- White onions
- Carrots
- Garlic cloves
- Fresh sprigs of thyme
- Brandy
- Chicken stock
- Water
- Crème fraiche
- Herb oil
Directions
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Then, set the oven to 450 F.
- You’ll want to toss the squash with olive oil, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Then, transfer the squash to the baking sheet. Roast for about 25 minutes in the oven.
- You’ll know the squash is ready when it’s tender to the touch of a fork and lightly caramelized. If it’s not soft enough, your soup will end up being gritty/grainy when it comes time to blend. Once you’re sure it’s ready, remove it from the oven and set it aside.
- While your squash is in the oven, set a 6-quart pot over medium heat on the stove. Melt butter in the pot and add all of your vegetables and seasoning – onions, carrots, garlic, thyme, salt and pepper.
- After about 10 minutes, the vegetables will be soft. Add the brandy and cook it down for about 5 minutes. From there, add in the chicken stock and water.
- Your chicken stock can be homemade, or you can buy low-sodium cartons at the store.
- Bring the contents of the pot to a boil. Then, reduce the heat and allow it to simmer for 15 minutes.
- Remove the pot from the heat. Discard the thyme sprigs and add the squash to the pot.
- You are now ready to blend the soup to get the creamy consistency. There are a few ways to do this, depending on the kind of kitchen equipment that you have.
- The best option is to use an immersion blender. It can ensure that everything stays in the pot.
- Otherwise, you can move the contents into a blender. It will likely take several batches to get everything blended.
- Everything should be blended until there are absolutely no chunks.
Variations of the Butternut Squash Soup
The Emeril Lagasse Butternut Squash Soup recipe is one of many recipes that are available from Emeril. You will want to consider just how hearty you want the soup to be.
If you’re serving the soup as an appetizer, the simpler recipe may be ideal. However, if you plan on serving it as a meal, you may want to consider adding in a few other ingredients – including wild rice and smoked sausage.
On Food Network, Emeril shares his Smoked Sausage, Butternut Squash and Wild Rice Soup recipe.
The process is similar to the recipe above. However, when you add the stock and water, you will also add in the rice.
The recipe also calls for smoked sausage (such as kielbasa) as well as fresh corn kernels. Half and half is also used to help add to the creaminess of the soup now that new ingredients have been introduced.
How Do You Prepare a Butternut Squash?
The Emeril Lagasse Butternut Squash Soup recipe works best when you find fresh, ripe squash. These are usually found year-round, despite them being harvested in the late summer and fall months.
Once you have two or three butternut squashes, you’ll want to prepare them into chunks so that they can be roasted for the recipe.
You will need to peel the squash to eliminate the hard rind. From there, use a spoon to remove the seeds. From there, cut the squash into three-inch chunks.
Uniformity is critical when you’re cutting the squash. If you have too many inconsistent sizes, some are going to cook more than others. It can lead to problems when you go to blend them later on in the recipe.
Where Can You Enjoy Emeril Lagasse’s Soup?
If you choose not to make the butternut squash soup at home, you can visit one of his restaurants around the US. The soup as well as some of his other famous dishes can be available so that you can explore the flavors. Trying the soup in a restaurant before attempting it at home can give you an idea as to what it should taste like.
How Do You Know When You’ve Perfected the Recipe?
Ripe butternut squash has a vibrant orange interior. When you roast the chunks, they should caramelize around the edges. This will give a sweeter and more robust flavor to the soup.
The finished soup should be a deep orange color.
You can also garnish the soup similar to what you would get inside an Emeril restaurant. Add a dollop of crème fraiche to the center of the soup. From there, drizzle an herb oil like oregano or rosemary around the crème fraiche and serve.
The consistency should be thick and creamy. As for the taste, it should offer a nice fall flavor that has a hint of herbs.
Why Does My Butternut Squash Soup Taste Bitter?
In some instances, there may be a bitter quality to the soup. This is not normal. There are a few reasons why it may be happening, however.
- The squash was not ripe enough
- The squash was grown using a large amount of chemicals
- The squash wasn’t properly cleaned and prepared
- Other herbs were not properly cleaned and prepared
There’s no way to recover from a bitter-tasting soup once it has been cooked. You will need to scrap the entire batch and start over. Taste all of your ingredients separately before you add them to the mix.
What Spices Help to Enhance the Flavor of Butternut Squash?
A variety of spices and herbs have the potential to enhance the flavor of butternut squash.
Whether you want to create your soup just like Emeril Lagasse has or put your own spin on things, it’s important to use fresh herbs and spices. If you buy dried ingredients, it won’t have the same effect.
Fresh basil, thyme, rosemary, and oregano can be added to the squash, either chopped up into the soup and blended or used as a garnish.
You may also want to consider sprinkling in one or more spices to add more flair. Popular spices include black pepper, cayenne pepper, cinnamon, coriander, and cumin.
Start off slow when adding the spices and herbs. Taste along the way and add as you see fit. Remember that many of the spices will cook down so that they lose their immediate potency.
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