Butternut squash, pumpkin and cauliflower soup

From Mary's Kitchen

We are having a lovely Spring here after a "winter" which was rather harsh for the Gulf Coast.  I say "winter" with tongue in cheek, as winter here often lasts about a week or two.  This year we had hard freezes, ice and some snow.  My hydrangeas, amaryllis and camellias were troopers and have survived.  Perhaps the recent cold weather turned my thoughts to soup. 

It was timely that I received a new cookbook as a gift - one of the Barefoot Contessa cookbooks.  Really lovely.  The butternut squash soup recipe beckoned, but as usual I had to tinker.  The original, as found in the cookbook and as posted on the Food Network, can be found here.

Here is my version:

1 1/2 large onion, chopped

1 medium butternut squash, peeled and cut into chunks

1 15 oz can pumpkin puree

1/2 head cauliflower, cut into large florets

1 quart chicken broth, low salt

Toss the cauliflower florets with some olive oil and season with some hot curry powder.  Roast in a 400-degree oven until the florets take on some color.

Sautee the onion in a large soup pot with 2 Tbsp butter and 2 Tbsp olive oil until translucent.  Add the squash, the pumpkin puree, the roasted cauliflower and the chicken broth.  Add 2 tsp salt and 1 tsp coarsely ground black pepper.  Cook until the vegetables are quite soft.  Puree either in a blender (in batches) or with an immersion blender (great invention!!)  in the soup pot.  Add heavy cream or half and half to taste.  I only added about 2/3 cup.  Season with more salt if needed and more hot curry powder.

This is an EASY recipe with lots of bold flavors.  I didn't add any condiments, as i loved the unadorned flavor of the soup.  Meg (the other M of Two Cooks) and her husband were here visiting recently - unfortunately before the soup creation - but I think they would have liked this one.

Enjoy!!

Meg’s Comment 
Mary, this is like 3 soups in one! I will have to have a party so I can try it out. I can't see a way to reduce the recipe without leftover veggies or lots of leftover soup. Sorry we aren't there to help you eat it.
But the gumbo that you made was the best I had on our trip. You blogged the recipe awhile back.