Butternut Squash Apple Soup

With its sweet, earthy taste, butternut squash soup is a favorite for Thanksgiving. Here, Williams Sonoma prepares the soup in a slow cooker, which helps to deepen and meld the flavors. It also frees up valuable space on your stovetop. For added convenience, we use a stick blender to puree the soup directly in the slow cooker. 

A slow cooker is handy not just for Thanksgiving dinner but whenever you are entertaining and stovetop and oven space are at a premium. You can prepare a dish hours in advance, be it a soup, stew or braised meat, and let the food cook unattended. Then the cooker keeps the nished dish warm until serving time. This appliance is also ideal for cooking weeknight meals for the family.

Ingredients:

1. 1 Tbs. unsalted butter
2. 1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
3. 4 cups butternut squash puree
4. 1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored and
     thinly sliced
5. 2 cups chicken stock
6. 2 small bay leaves
7. 3 tsp. salt, plus more, to taste
8. 1/2 cup crème fraîche
9. 1/4 tsp. ground coriander (optional)
10. 1/4 tsp. grated peeled fresh ginger (optional)
11. 8 baguette slices, each 1/2 inch thick,
      lightly brushed with olive oil and toasted
      until golden brown
12. Freshly ground pepper, to taste

Directions:

In a sauté pan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the onion and cook until soft, about 10 minutes. Transfer the onion to a slow cooker. Add the squash puree, apple, stock, bay leaves and the 3 tsp. salt to the slow cooker and stir to combine. Cover and cook for 2 hours according to the manufacturers instructions. 

Remove the bay leaves and discard. Add the crème fraîche. Using a stick blender, puree the soup directly in the slow cooker until smooth. Stir in the coriander and ginger. Ladle the soup into warmed soup bowls, garnish each with a toasted baguette slice, andseason the slices with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Williams-Sonoma Kitchen.