When I set out to make a tomato soup that wasn’t too acidic, I discovered that butternut squash was the wonder ingredient I needed for balance. The squash has a hint of sweetness, plus a starchy consistency to give the soup a luscious thickness. The healthy combination of vegetables keeps customers steadily ordering this soup all year long. The butternut squash offers a mega-dose of Vitamin A (one cup of cubed squash contains nearly 300 percent of your daily requirement), and the tomatoes are high in Vitamin C. After this, I experimented with adding butternut squash to lots of other soups. No matter how many other variations I dream up, squash with tomato remains a winning combination.

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons butter
3 whole cloves garlic, peeled
1 large Spanish onion, peeled and diced
5 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 ribs celery, diced
2 pounds butternut squash, peeled and cut into large chunks
2 cans (14 ounces each) whole tomatoes
8 cups vegetable or chicken stock
1 cup sherry
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

In a stockpot melt the butter over mediumhigh heat. Add the garlic, onion, carrots, celery, and butternut squash. Sauté for 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes, stock, and sherry. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium, cover the pot, and simmer until the squash is tender and soft, 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the basil, cilantro, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Puree in the pot using a hand blender or in a regular blender working in batches until smooth.

Makes 12 servings. Since vegetarian soups aren’t fortified by the proteins found in meat or fish stocks, their texture tends to be a bit thinner. Pureed butternut squash makes a tasty, natural thickener.