Butternut Squash & Pear Curry Soup

This vegan soup is a great "flu buster" kind of meal, as it's full of vitamins A & C, and contains such immune system-enhancing ingredients as onion and garlic, and has a flavor you can taste even through a cold! Colorful and with a distinctive 100% delicious taste, this soup is always a favorite at all my fall and winter parties, a regular at all my Halloween party feasts & a Thanksgiving recipe I just couldn't imagine doing without. and neither could most of my friends who were gravely disapoointed the one year I didn't make it. As such, and given how easy it is to make, it might just hold the title of "My Most Requested Recipe"

Put squash face down in a glass baking dish in 3/4 inch of water,
cover with wax paper, and cook in microwave on HIGH for 15 minutes. (I usually cut up other ingredients. measure spices, etc. while this is going on). When it's done, if it seems soft, let it cool. (you want it pretty soft but not shriveling up)

Saute onions in oil on medium heat for about 3 minutes (until golden). Add garlic, spices and sugar and mush around for another 30-45 seconds. Peel off outer rind of squash and add orange flesh into pot, along with pear pieces and broth.
Simmer for 10 minutes to let flavors mix.

Let cool enough so you don't burn yourself, then puree mixture in blender or Vitamix (my preference for just about everything!) until smooth. Then, all that's left to do it enjoy the fabulous fall harvest taste of one of the most unique soups I think you'll ever find!

REALLY short on time, or hate peeling squash like I do?

Try this cheat.

Instead of the broth & the squash, use 1 1/2 boxes of pre-made squash soup from a company like Imagine or Pacific. Just saute a small onion instead, and everything else is the same from those instructions onward.