Butternut Squash Soup - Two Ways

With Christmas behind us, I've been keeping a keen eye on some "healthier" food choices.  I don't know about you, but I damn near slipped into a food coma after everything I ate during the whole of Christmas week.  And if you must know, yes; I ate A LOT of my own cookies!  But don't worry, everyone that was supposed to receive them first did.  The biggest offenders were those damn Cookie Balls.  I just couldn't stop eating them!  Bad, bad Cookie Balls (tsk, tsk)!

That said, I've made an effort to eliminate (however temporarily) processed foods.  That means I've had to cook a bit again.  I am trying to keep it simple, though - at least for now.

So that brings me to the recipe at hand, Butternut Squash Soup.  I'm going to post two different recipes I use.  The first is vegan, using no dairy.  The second uses dairy. (And by the way, the photo below is not mine... I forgot to snap some shots of it before posting).

VEGAN BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP

INGREDIENTS:

3 1/2 - 4 cups of butternut squash (using either fresh & cubed or frozen)
1 cup vegetable broth (or more if you like a thinner soup)
1 cup coconut milk
1/2 medium sweet onion
1 tbl olive oil
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/4 tsp black pepper

DIRECTIONS:

Slice the onion and saute in a small pan with the olive oil for about 10 minutes.

Add the onions, olive oil and all remaining ingredients into a slow cooker for about 5-6 hours.

Place the contents into a blender (or use an immersion blender) and puree until smooth.

If thinner soup is desired, add an additional cup of vegetable broth and/or coconut milk.

Recipe yields 6 cups, 90 calories per serving.


(NON-VEGAN) BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP

For those of you who prefer to add dairy to their butternut squash soup, there are only a few minor changes...

INGREDIENTS:

3 1/2 - 4 cups of butternut squash (using either fresh & cubed or frozen)
1 cup vegetable broth (or more if you like a thinner soup)
1 cup milk
3 oz. cream cheese
1/2 medium sweet onion
1 tbl butter
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/4 tsp black pepper


PERSONAL NOTES:

I prefer to use pumpkin pie spice instead of individual spices like nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon, etc... Please feel free to alter the recipe to suit your preferences.  Start here and try a mouthful.  Maybe you like more of one spice and less of another and so on. It's really pretty adaptable.  It's my favorite soup to make.  It's easy, healthy (the vegan version at least), and filling.  Perfect too for the winter months.

Italian Lemon (Jeanettes) Cookies

Finally!  Here's the recipe and directions for everyone's favorite holiday cookie.

This recipe was given to me by a little old Italian woman who has since passed away.  When she taught me, she literally took me by the hand and walked me through the whole process.  What a sweet woman.  After all these years I felt it was time to share the recipe.  I don't see any reason why not.  It's a family recipe; shouldn't it be shared?

ITALIAN LEMON (JEANETTES) COOKIES

INGREDIENTS:

5-6 CUPS flour

4 tsp baking powder

1 CUP sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp lemon extract

½ pound butter (2 sticks)

1 tsp salt

6 eggs

Icing: 1 cup Confectioner’s sugar, 2 tbls milk, ½ tsp lemon extract

Makes 6 dozen

DIRECTIONS:

1… Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2… Mix together the dry ingredients.  Make a “well” in the center and add butter and eggs to the center.  KNEAD the dough until smooth.  Continue adding small bits of flour until batter comes away clean from your hands.

3… Take tablespoon-sized portions of dough and roll them out (to about 4 1/2" - 5" pieces) and twist them. 

4...Place them on a cookie sheet.

5… Bake approximately 8 minutes. Cookies are done when the bottoms are golden brown and the tops just start to turn.

Once they've cooled completely, mix the confectioner sugar/milk/lemon extract in a small bowl.  Turn the cookies upside down and dip them in the icing.  Place them on wax paper to harden.

Then enjoy them!!!

Thimble Cookies

These cookies are some of the first cookies I started baking with Mom at the holidays.  I was probably in junior high when I started making these.  Needless to say, the Thimble Cookies are a holiday staple.  Even though I don't really eat them, I have to make them.  Just a tradition, I guess.

I wish I could find my mom's original Thimble Cookie recipe, but I have no idea what happened to it.  Either way, I found the same one online.  So the Thimble Cookie recipe is adapted from here.

THIMBLE COOKIES

INGREDIENTS:

1 stick butter

1 stick margarine

2 egg yolks

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup sugar

2 – ½ cups sifted flour

Raspberry jam

DIRECTIONS:

Heat oven to 350°.

Cream butter and margarine. Gradually add the sugar beating until light and fluffy.

Add the egg yolks, one at a time, beating after each addition.

Add sifted flour and vanilla.

Shape dough into 1 inch diameter balls. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. With your finger, make an indentation on the top of each cookie. Fill each cookie indentation with jam.

Bake until lightly brown, about 15 minutes.

PERSONAL NOTES:

I will use either butter or margarine, not one of each.  Generally I only use butter.  I have no idea why this recipe calls for both.  It's a real head-scratcher.

And while the recipe calls for raspberry jam - and I have used it quite successfully in the past - I like to switch it up and either use blueberry or black currant jam.  YUM. 

Oreo Cheesecake Cookies

I consider myself lucky to have stumbled upon this recipe.  I don't know why it hadn't occurred to me before to mix oreos and cheesecake.  After all, there are Oreo cheesecakes in the world.  So why not Oreo Cheesecake Cookies?  These taste fantastic - and just like cheesecake.

I found the recipe here on the browneyedbaker blog and she adapted the recipe from Tasty Kitchen Blog.

OREO CHEESECAKE COOKIES

INGREDIENTS:

½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ cup mini chocolate chips
1 cup Oreo cookie crumbs


DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and cream cheese on medium speed until smooth and well-combined.

Add the sugar and vanilla extract and mix until the ingredients are well-combined. Add the flour and mix on low until the flour is incorporated. Stir in the mini chocolate chips with a rubber spatula.

Place the Oreo cookie crumbs in a small bowl. Scoop the cookies into about 1½ to 2″ balls and then roll in the cookie crumbs. Place the cookie balls on the baking sheet. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the edges are golden and the tops are slightly puffed.

Cool on the pan for 2 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.


PERSONAL NOTES:

I actually didn't use Oreos (oops).  Instead, I used the Nabisco Famous Chocolate Wafers.  They're pricey but oh, so worth it.  They have a superior chocolatey flavor when it comes to cookies.  I used these in almost every recipe that calls for chocolate crumbs or cookies.

Cookie Balls!!!

This is what I call the following concoction, although I have seen more subtle (and classier) titles like "Cookie Truffles", blah, blah, blah.

These are out of this world and require NO baking!!! Incidentally, they don't require any real skill either.  Anyone can make them (and should be able to!). 

I found the recipe here, although if you Google "cookie balls" you'll come across several options.

Check these out...

COOKIE BALLS

INGREDIENTS:

1 (16 ounce) package Oreo cookies , crushed

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese , softened

1 (24 ounce) package white chocolate bark

1 (24 ounce) package chocolate bark

DIRECTIONS:

Using a blender or hand held mixer, mix Oreos and cream cheese together.

Roll into walnut size balls.

Chill for an hour.

Melt approximately 3/4 package of white almond bark.

Stick a toothpick in an Oreo ball and dip it in the melted white almond bark.

Allow to harden on wax paper.

Takes about 15 minute.

While waiting, melt about 1/4 package of chocolate almond bark.

When Oreo balls are no longer sticky to the touch, decorate with drizzles of chocolate and white almond bark (just use a sandwich bag with a tiny hole cut in one corner to drizzle the almond bark).

PERSONAL NOTES:

I used Callebaut white & milk chocolate.  It was a little dicey dipping the balls into the chocolate, but overall they look fine.  I used two forks to dip and place the cookie ball on the wax paper.

They are SO GOOD!!!

I'm also going to try these out with the mint Oreos.  I'll let you know how it goes...

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies

This recipe is just another version of a classic: chocolate chocolate chip cookies.  I've made these before (probably Mrs. Fields' version - which is YUMMY by the way), but I like playing around with different recipes.  So I made these... my husband is IN LOVE with these cookies!

By the way, the original recipe is compliments of allrecipes.com and can be found here.

CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup butter, softened

1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cocoa powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)


DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

In large bowl, beat butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt; stir into the butter mixture until well blended. Mix in the chocolate chips and walnuts. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or just until set. Cool slightly on the cookie sheets before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.


PERSONAL NOTES:

I used a combination of semi-sweet and milk chocolate.  The milk chocolate I used was Callebaut's.  YUMMY!  It really does make a difference when you use quality products.  It's worth spending the extra bucks to get the best results.

Also, I omitted the nuts.  When given the chance, I generally don't include nuts in recipes.  I like them separate thank you very much.

Espresso Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies

As I was perusing my cookie recipes in search of my oatmeal raisin recipe, I came across this one.  So I decided to make it before doing the oatmeal raisins.  What a great flavor combo!  While I'm not a huge fan of peanut butter or peanut butter/chocolate, I DO appreciate a good mocha-flavored goodie.  And that's what this is.  Actually, I don't know why I hadn't made this before.  It's really pretty simple.

The recipe is compliments of foodnetwork.com

Here it is...

ESPRESSO DARK CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened

1 cup light brown sugar

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 large egg

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons instant espresso coffee powder

1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Makes 2 dozen cookies

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

Cream the butter with the sugars using an electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy, approximately 30 seconds. Beat in the egg and the vanilla extract for another 30 seconds.

In a mixing bowl, sift together the dry ingredients and beat into the butter mixture at low speed for about 15 seconds. Stir in the espresso coffee powder and chocolate chips.

Using a 1-ounce scoop or a 2-tablespoon measure, drop cookie dough onto a greased cookie sheet about 3 inches apart. Gently press down on the dough with the back of a spoon to spread out into a 2-inch circle. Bake for about 20 minutes or until nicely browned around the edges. Bake a little longer for a crispier cookie.

PERSONAL NOTES:

I used almost double the amount of espresso because I like a pretty strong coffee flavor.  Also, I used a fine quality dark chocolate (75% cacao, Tarakan Chocolate). I think this makes the overall flavor much more dramatic.  I love it!