Butternut Squash & Cinnamon Soup

One of the new, exotic items in my kitchen thanks to our wedding registry is a Bamix hand mixer, perfect for blending vegetables to make soup.  Given the autumn turn of the weather and upcoming Thanksgiving, comfort food like squash soup is often on my mind, so I sauteed a pan of butternut squash cubes in a bit of olive oil.  Adding white pepper, salt and cinnamon, the squash softened and slightly carmelized in the pan. As soon as I was sure they were cooking through, I added just enough chicken stock to cover the vegetables and brought it to a boil before letting it simmer for a few minutes.  Transferring hot liquid is not without a few splashes of terror, but once it was safely in a deep glass bowl, I was able to start using the Bamix to smooth into a soup.  The texture was pretty thick, so I added more stock until it was just right.  I was really happy with how the soup turned out and how quick it was to whip up!  Next time: burnt garlic and creme fraiche on top, or perhaps the "so hot right now" fried sage leaf and sage oil.