Health & nutrition insights.

Ahhh fall.

This season full of vibrant colors and a cooler temperatures that are perfect for
outdoor activities. During this busy season, we need healthy fuel to give us energy for our
busy schedules. My garden is overflowing this year with butternut squash. So I am having fun
experimenting with new ways to use this beautiful squash. Winter squash (acorn, butternut,
and spaghetti squash) are great sources of healthy carbohydrate, fiber, and beta carotene. One of my favorite easy meals for busy nights is soup. There is nothing like a warm pot of
soup simmering on the stove, filling the house with a delicious aroma. I have a recipe for
roasted vegetable soup, so I added butternut squash to the recipe.  It is delicious! Roasting brings out the natural sweetness in the vegetables which makes the soup taste super
rich and delicious. Pureeing provides a smooth consistency, and my kids loved this texture. I
re-named it “orange soup”, and it was an even bigger hit. Serve it with some crusty whole-
grain bread for dipping, and this is a perfect comfort food for a cool fall day.

Roasted Vegetable Soup (also known as: Orange Soup)

This vegetable soup recipe is a great way to include a variety of vegetables in your
daily diet. This recipe is a great template. You can vary the vegetables to include
veggies that are in season or available. Roasting enhances the delicious flavors
of the vegetables, so this is a key step in this recipe. 2 potatoes (gold or sweet) cut into quarters
1 onion cut into quarters
1 cup cubed butternut squash or 2 medium carrots cut into 1/2 inch slices
1 bunch asparagus, bottoms snipped off and stalks cut into 1 inch pieces
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
4 cups reduced sodium vegetable or chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon salt (more to taste)
1/2 teaspoon pepper (more or less to taste)
1 28 ounce can tomatoes (crushed or diced)
1 teaspoon thyme
2 bay leaves 1 Roast the vegetables: Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
In a large bowl, toss the vegetables with olive oil, salt, and pepper.
Put the vegetables on a baking sheet that either has a Silpat on it or has been
been sprayed with cooking spray.

Roast in the oven until vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes.

2 Start the soup: In a large pot, combine the broth, tomatoes, thyme,
and bay leaves and bring to a boil. 3 Stir in the roasted vegetables, reduce the heat to medium, and
simmer for 10-20 minutes. 4 Remove the bay leaves. Use an immersion blender to blend the
soup to the desired consistency. If you do not have an immersion blender, you
can use a conventional blender. Puree the soup in small batches. Be careful!
Hot soup can splash out of the blender and cause burns if you are not careful. If
you prefer a chunky soup, skip the blender step.

5 To serve: top with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese for extra flavor.

= Makes 6 servings:

Per serving: 157 calories, 6 g Total Fat (includes 5 g healthy mono-usaturated
fat), 23 g Carbohydrate (includes 4 g Dietary Fiber), 7 g Protein, 193 mg sodium
(varies depending on how much you add for seasoning)

By: Jill Trotman, MPH, RD, LDN, CDE