Last Thanksgiving, the thought of making my traditional Thanksgiving menu seemed unexciting and filled me with a sense of dread. In addition, with house guests and many meals needing to be made, filling my fridge space with an entire turkey seemed inconvenient and counterproductive. Instead, I threw caution to the wind and made an entire Southwestern Thanksgiving menu courtesy of Canyon Cafe: Bringing the Southwest Experience Home. (One of my favorite cookbooks ever!)
This incredibly unforgettable menu is as follows:
- Sunburst Squash Soup - a velvety squash soup enhanced with cinnamon, nutmeg, and cumin.
- Warm Green Bean and Mushroom Salad with Roasted Garlic Bleu Cheese Vinaigrette - delicious on its own, but didn't seem cohesive with the rest of the meal. I recommend making Toasted-Pecan Green Beans as a side instead.
- Stuffed Turkey Rolls with Poblano Cornbread-Chorizo Stuffing and Pecan Mole Sauce - turkey tenderloins marinated in a white wine-Dijon marinade rolled around a fantastic chorizo-poblano stuffing and served with a simple yet delicious pecan mole sauce.
- Cranberry-Jalapeno Chutney - an exciting chutney with cranberries, jalapenos, and ginger.
- Smashed Candied Sweet Potatoes - roasted sweet potatoes seasoned with chile powder and honey.
- Pumpkin Creme Brulee - a decadent pumpkin creme brulee served with fresh raspberries.
My guests and I were so enchanted by the menu that I am doing it again this year (minus the green bean salad)! Check back for the rest of these wonderful recipes for a Thanksgiving that is anything but boring!
Sunburst Squash Soup
Serves 6
Ingredients:
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 pound yellow onions, diced
3 pounds butternut squash, peeled and cubed
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons salt (or to taste)
1 1/2 quarts chicken or vegetable stock
1 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons butter
Your favorite green and red bottle hot sauces (I use El Yucateco brand.)
Directions:
Heat the oil in a soup pot and saute onions until translucent. Do not brown, Add squash cubes and spices, toss to coat. Add stock, bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer. Cover and cook just until tender. Strain and reserve stock.
In a food processor or with a hand mixer, puree soup with enough stock to make a medium-thick soup. Return to soup pot. Add cream and stir to heat well. Add butter and adjust seasonings if necessary. Keep on low-do not allow to boil from this point. If it gets too hot the soup may separate.
Serve dotted with your favorite green and red bottled hot sauces pulled out from the center to form a sunburst.
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