CREDIT: FANSHAWE COLLEGE
Fanshawe Chef Patrick Hersey (pictured) shares his favourite fall soup recipe to get you the autumn mood.

Autumn is right around the corner. The weather may start to get colder but this also comes with new activities to try. Patrick Hersey, a Chef in Fanshawe College’s Tourism, Hospitality and Culinary Arts department recommended making a new fall dish that you might have not tried before.

“When I think of fall foods, I immediately think of the bounty of local vegetables that become available, including root vegetables and squash,” Hersey said. “One of my favourite fall vegetables is butternut squash–with its naturally sweet flavour and creamy texture. Whether it is roasted, pureed or turned into a soup–this vegetable is incredibly versatile and provides a very satisfying flavour, consistency and warmth on a cool fall day.”

Chef Hersey’s Autumn Spiced Butternut Squash Soup with Caramel Apple


Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp butter

• ¼ onion, peel and minced

• ½ leek, white part only, coarsely chopped

• 1 small potato, peeled and coarsely chopped

• 1 ½ lbs/650g butternut squash, peeled/seeded, coarsely chopped

• 900 ml chicken or vegetable stock

• 1/8 tsp ground white pepper

• 1/8 tsp cinnamon

• ¼ tsp ground ginger

• 1/8 tsp ground allspice

• Garnish: drizzle each portion with 1 tsp 35 per cent cream or plain yogurt and sprinkle minced chives

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a soup pot over medium heat.

2. Add onion, leek, potato and squash and sweat for 3-4 minutes or until veggies are coated in butter and start to soften/become aromatic.

3. Add stock and season with salt and pepper. All vegetables should be covered. Add more stock if needed.

4. Turn up heat, bring to a boil then reduce heat to a simmer.

5. Add the spices all at the same time, stir and cook until the vegetables are soft and fully cooked (approximately 25 minutes). Once cooked, puree soup in blender in (up to) two batches.

6. Add pureed soup back to pot and adjust consistency with additional stock if necessary. Check seasoning.

For the garnish:

• ½ Granny Smith apple, 1 cm diced with skin on

• 15g butter

• 1 tbsp brown sugar

Directions:

1. Melt butter in small sauté pan over medium high heat.

2. Add diced apples and cook for approx. 3-4 minutes or until apples begin to caramelize.

3. Add brown sugar, reduce heat to medium low and continue to cook for an additional minute to allow brown sugar to caramelize and coat apples. Apples should retain some texture.

4. Serve soup by placing 1 tbsp of the garnish mixture into the centre of the soup just before serving. Be careful when handling as the caramel will be very hot!

Hersey also recommended serving this dish with some crusty bread. Hopefully this dish gets you ready for this upcoming fall. It might be even something new to try for Thanksgiving for your family and friends.