Acorn squash soup with spicy yogurt topping
- SOUP:
- ¼ cup old-fashioned rolled oats (not instant);
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil;
- 1 cup finely chopped yellow onion (about 1 small);
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic (about 3 cloves);
- ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt;
- 2 pounds acorn squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into ¾-inch cubes (about 6 cups);
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg;
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper;
- 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes;
- 1 quart low-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth.
- SPICY YOGURT TOPPING, AND TO FINISH:
- ½ lemon;
- 1 cup plain whole-milk Greek yogurt;
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt;
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or just a pinch;
- ½ to 1 teaspoon sugar;
- ¼ cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley.
Instructions:
- To prepare the soup, grind the oats in a food processor until you have coarse meal, about 20 seconds. If you don’t own a handheld blender, do not clean the processor bowl yet.
- Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the onion, garlic, and ¼ teaspoon of the salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is glassy and soft, 6 to 8 minutes. Increase the heat to medium, add the squash, and cook until the pieces shine with a coating of oil, stirring, about 1 minute. Sprinkle the oatmeal, nutmeg, pepper, and pepper flakes across the top. Stir and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the broth and the remaining ½ teaspoon salt and bring to a boil, scraping the bottom to release any toasted oatmeal bits. Decrease the heat to maintain a simmer, cover, and cook until the squash is tender, about 8 minutes (a paring knife should glide out easily).
- While the soup simmers, make the spicy yogurt topping. Finely grate the lemon half until you have ½ teaspoon zest. Squeeze the fruit to get 1 tablespoon lemon juice. Add the yogurt, lemon juice, zest, salt, and cayenne to a small serving bowl and beat with a fork until smooth.
- To finish, puree the soup with a handheld blender in the saucepan, or in batches in the food processor (use caution with hot liquids!). If using a food processor, return the mixture to the saucepan and gently rewarm over medium heat until bubbles appear just below the surface, stirring a few times. Add ½ teaspoon of the sugar. Taste for salt, pepper, and sugar and adjust. Ladle the soup into deep plates, spoon a generous tablespoon of topping into each, and garnish with parsley. Be sure to swirl the topping into the soup before you dig in.
- TO GET A HEAD START: The soup and the topping can be prepared, separately, up to 3 days ahead. Chill, covered. Gently reheat the soup, stirring occasionally. You can also freeze the soup, but not the topping, for up to 1 month.
- TO VARY IT: Use blue hubbard squash, or easily available (and ready cut if you like) chopped butternut squash.
- TO LIGHTEN IT UP: In my perfect culinary universe, whole-milk Greek yogurt is a must to bring these simple flavors together. So give it a try before you go lowfat (which, of course, you can).