Butternut squash soup with coconut milk

Here's a pre-thanksgiving soup that I made for dinner tonight. We leave tomorrow morning at 4am on a drive to Altoona to have Thanksgiving with our family. There has been freezing rain here today and I skid a few times today and hope tomorrow's journey is without incident.
This recipe started out as the curried butternut squash and bean stew - I started off by sauteing onions, garlic in some oil. Added the butternut squash and cauliflower and added some of the spices - cumin powder, salt, red chilli flakes, basil. As it was cooking, I was reminded of a sweet potato soup with coconut milk and collard greens that a friend made - which was awesome. So, this recipe morphed into that! It came out yummy. We ate it with some leftover white rice. It would probably taste even better with brown rice. Or quinoa. Or Harvest Grains from Trader Joe's. I would also consider adding Tofu to this recipe next time - it was too late by the time I made the switch. I am going to freeze the soup - I hope it un-freezes well.





Chunky Butternut Squash Soup with Coconut Milk

Ingredients:

Onions - 2 small
Oil - 2 T
Garlic - 2 cloves, mashed
Ginger - 1/2 Tsp
Butternut Squash - 3 cups, cubed (I used Trader Joe's pre-cut)
Cauliflower Florets - 2 cups
Garbanzo Beans - 1 15oz can
Coconut Milk, Light - 1 15 oz can
Salt, To taste
Turmeric - .5 tsp
Red Chilli Flakes - 1T
Cumin Powder - 1 T
Lemon juice - 1t
Cilantro, to garnish
Basil (dried) - .5 T
Agave Nectar - . 5 T


Heat pot; add oil. Saute garlic and onion till browned.
Add salt, chili flakes, turmeric, basil and cumin. Let the flavors mix.
Add Butternut squash, Cauliflower florets and the Beans and mix together with the spices and cook for 2-3 minutes.
Add 2 cups water, coconut milk, and agave nectar (or sugar). Taste and adjust seasonings.
Close and bring to a boil.
After the soup starts to boil, reduce heat and leave on for 15 minutes.
Add cilantro and splash of lemon juice.
Turn off the heat and serve.

I added dry roasted peanuts on top for crunch too :)
Happy Thanksgiving. :)