Weekending and Squash Soup

Hey guess what? I successfully made my squash soup perfectly AND I measured everything. Huzzah! This has been a pretty damn good weekend. I got caught up on just about everything I needed to do, made some tasty food that'll last me for a few days before I need to cook again and I got some serious relaxing, TVing and reading done. I seriously don't remember the last time I had the time and attention span to get through a few hours of reading undisturbed. I even went for a run! *gasp* Well, more of a walk with a few spurts of jogging in between... Anyway, details. It was a good workout on a beautiful, sunny, semi warm (50ish degrees) day and my thighs definitely hurt because I am seriously out of shape. Oof. I think my last run was about 2 months ago. I've got to buy a set of weights to add in some strength training too. I can't expect to fully appreciate my Whole30  if I'm not exercising. No matter what you do, diet is only part of the health cycle, right?

Anyway, aside from my quite tasty (copious amounts of) chicken broth and squash soup, I also made some one pot spaghetti and meatballs today. Oh man, how awesome is that? Hey, don't judge, it's spaghetti squash. 

I can't take credit for this one, like the roast chicken, this one belongs to the gods of the internet. More specifically, I found this on PaleoPot. I didn't follow the recipe, just the idea. I threw in some canned crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, spices and grass fed meatballs flavored like Italian sausage and a spaghetti squash sliced in two and seeds removed. 5 hours on low and magic dinner!

So now I have to decide just what the heck to have for lunch tomorrow: chicken and gravy, spaghetti or squash soup? Maybe all three! Or maybe not...

Anyway, you should see this soup for yourself, eh?

Winter Squash Soup

4 cups winter squash

3 cups chicken/veg broth

1 cup coconut milk

1 tbsp cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp cloves

salt to taste

Cut squash in half, scoop out seeds and roast open side down at 375 for 30-50 minutes, depending on the type of squash (I've used hubbard, butternut and pumpkin) until soft. Hubbard is tough to cut, so prick it all over and roast for 10ish minutes whole before cutting in half. 

I call Hubbard squash Blue Meanies, partly because I love yelling "Blue Meanies!" and partly because these these are huge and dense. And blue. Duh. But it did make a darn tasty soup that rivaled my previous butternut soup. 

Scoop out the flesh from your cooked squash and add to a pot along with the chicken broth and spices. Mix ingredients well and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for up to a half hour. 

Add coconut milk and continue simmering for another 5-10 minutes to reduce the liquid and allow the flavors to meld. 

Adjust seasoning to taste and blend liquid (an immersion blender works great or in batches in a full blender). 

Top with precooked protein or veggies if you want and serve. 

I opted for some leftover ground beef. Man, was this filling. I feel like I'm going to be making a lot of soup this winter. The warm and creamy is the definite combatant of carb cravings. Want pudding? Eat a sweet, creamy soup. Win.