Nothing goes to Waste

Recently, I found a very interesting thing to do with ground beef.  You'll never guess, but I mixed it with brown rice, diced tomatoes and some wonderful middle eastern spices to make a delightful stuffing for squash.  I hulled out some zucchini and yellow crook neck squash to create the cavity for the stuffing.  Then baked the filled squash in a bath of tomato sauce, chicken stock and white wine for a perfect meal.  Now, what to do with all the squash that I scraped out of the middle of the squash!!!

Make a wonderful soup of course.  Here's all you need to do to make a perfect, light soup that goes beautifully with a sandwich for an easy weekend meal, or as a first course for a more formal dinner.

Ingredients


6  zucchini or yellow squash (or both) cut in cubes
2  tablespoons butter
1  medium onion sliced in half moons
1  large garlic smashed
2  cups chicken stock
1  cup milk (use whole milk if you can)
1  teaspoon ground nutmeg
Salt and pepper to taste

Melt your butter in a 4 quart sauce pan and saute the onions slowly until wilted.  Add the garlic and stir briefly just to soften.  Be careful that it does not brown or it will add a bitter taste.  Add the squash and continue to saute until it is very soft and you can mash it with the back of a wooden spoon (about 10 minutes).  Season with salt and pepper and add the ground nutmeg.  At this point you need to transfer this to a blender to emulsify the mixture but if you have a "hand blender" this works just as well in the pan and you don't have to dirty another device.

Return the pureed pulp to the pan, add the chicken stock and milk and simmer slowly to incorporate everything.  Check your seasonings, adjust to suit you and you have a delightful soup, just that easy...

Bon Appetit!!!