Sunshine Soup

For a rainy, cold harvest season!  I used several different types of squash and apples.  The vibrant color of this soup will brighten your day, despite the weather.

Here is what I used:

1/2 small baking pumpkin
1 small to medium butternut squash
6 medium apples
1 acorn squash
1-2 onions
optional: 5 carrots

Garnish:
cinnamon to taste
fresh thyme leaves
spoonful of sour cream, optional
and if you like your soup spicy like me, add a dash of cayenne

Peel and chop the squash and apples into small, approx 1x1 inch cubes.  Put all ingredients minus the cinnamon and cayenne into a soup pan.  Cover with about 1" water and bring to a boil.  Turn heat down so that the soup simmers gently for 30+ minutes, or until all ingredients are soft.  At this point I use a egg beater to puree the soup.  There are many other ways, both more and less technical than mine, so take your pick.  

Serve with garnish (see above) and a smile :-)

My Garden Fresh Tomato Coulis with Spaghetti Noodles

~~~TOMATO COULIS~~~

Summer Recipe: great for canning or to emphasize the flavor of fresh tomatoes in a dish.

Ingredients
lots of fresh & ripe tomatoes, about 4 pounds +/-, chopped
2 onions, chopped
2+ garlic cloves, chopped
1 TBS butter
1 TBS olive oil
several sprigs thyme, one sprig rosemary, 2 bay leaves
salt and pepper

Saute chopped onions and garlic for 5-10 minutes. Then add chopped tomatoes, herbs, and salt and pepper, bring to a boil and cook for 30 minutes at low temp. Remove from heat and process through a food mill, like the one below:

food mill

Recipe adapted from: http://www.easy-french-food.com/homemade-tomato-sauce-recipe.html

Add to spaghetti noodles, polenta, meat, seafood, or anything else that you feel inspired to combine it with. You can also freeze the sauce for later use, with great results.