I love food.  Really, I do.  I love being able to go to new locations to Sip and Savour local menu items, whether it is a dessert, main course, or side menu items.  I also love that the Rochester area has an abundance of locally grown food .  The combination of locally grown food, local markets in which to purchase the local items, and our growing Rochester food scene inspires me in my cooking at home.  Yes, I love to cook also!  I can sit and look at recipes for hours, leafing through cookbooks or meticulously scanning for recipes on Pinterest or the internet.  Part of this amazing opportunity to meet and explore the Rochester food scene continues to inspire my menu items at home (yes, I actually create a “menu” for the week).

Have you ever been to a restaurant and left saying “I want to make that at home!”? I do this quite often, so much so, that I typically attempt new recipes after a recent dining out….sometimes trial and error, combining recipes that I may have researched online or through cookbooks, or I will add in some of my own flare.  I would like to share with you those moments and my finished recipes so that you have an opportunity to try your favorite’s from local restaurants at home.  These will not be exact replica’s, but inspired by some of the menu items that I taste at local restaurants.  When I trial and error recipes at home, my husband is my taste-tester, my critic.  He is honest, gives suggestions, and helps me to “perfect” the recipe that is the final product.  I am now going to share those recipes with you!  They will not come after every blog post, but in menu items that I try to recreate or am inspired by at home after a recent posting.

I hope you enjoy…

This recipe is inspired by the Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Sage Beurre Noisette and Creme Fraiche at Laurier Catering Company.

If you have not checked out my post on Laurier Catering Company, click here.  Chef Brad Stevenson is a genius in the kitchen.  He made an amazing Roasted Butternut Squash Soup that with every bite, I found myself saying “Mmmm, this is soo amazing! How did he do this?”

Well, in talking to Chef Stevenson, the key was the beurre noisette with sage.  Beurre Noisette is a brown butter sauce that can be used in a variety of ways, but many may typically associate it with pasta.  Check out this youtube video here if you would like more information.

Here is my recipe of Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Beurre Noisette!  I hope you enjoy it!

1 large Butternut Squash
1 quart stock
*I used chicken stock, but feel free to use vegetable stock, or replace the stock with 4 cups water
1 tablespoons melted butter
one medium onion chopped
1 cup water (2 cups if using a larger squash)
3-4 tablespoons butter
fresh sage leaves (3-4 will do)
creme fraiche or heavy cream
salt and pepper to season
immersion blender or regular blender

Please remember that you can adjust the seasoning at any time (everyone’s taste it different).  Feel free to omit the sage if you do not like sage, but you may want to try it with the sage first!  It is not overpowering, just a hint of sage in the background of your spoonful of soup.  You may also choose to use more or less butter.

1.  Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

2.  Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.

3.  Cut the butternut squash in half.  Be careful!  I started at the top and continued to work my way down and around the squash.

4.  Place the squash, cut side up, on the pan and brush with melted butter.  Season generously with salt and pepper.

5.  Roast in the oven for at least 60 minutes, until tender.
*I had a very large squash, so I roasted mine in the oven for 1 hour and 20 minutes.

6.  While the squash is roasting, chop one medium onion and sauté in a large pot in a drizzle of olive oil until translucent.

7.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

8.  Scoop out the flesh of the butternut squash into the pot and stir around to incorporate.
(careful…it’s hot!  You could also roast the squash ahead of time and scoop out the flesh when you are ready to begin the soup  – great meal prep tip if you are a busy person!)

9.  Add one quart broth (or replace with the 4 cups water) and add an additional cup of water.
*If your squash was larger, like mine was, feel free to add additional water.  I added an additional cup.  The soup will be looser with more liquid and thicker with less liquid.
*With the additional cup water I added (remember I had a large squash), it was the perfect consistency, not too thick, but not too loose and soupy.

10.  Bring the soup to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce to medium low and simmer for at least 30 minutes.  Break up any remaining chunks of squash that are in the soup and don’t forget to stir toward the last 15 minutes!
*I simmered my soup for 45 minutes to develop a deeper flavor.

11.  Toward the last 15 minutes of your soup simmering, melt 3-4 tablespoons butter (feel free to use more!) in a saucepan over medium heat.  You will see bubbles begin to form and foam a bit, start whisking or stirring immediately.  Continue to stir.

12.  Add the sage leaves at this point.  The sage will bubble in the saucepan.  You will see little brown bits that begin to form at the bottom, your butter will begin to brown, and you will begin to smell a nutty flavor that will fill your kitchen. MMMMM, Yum  
*If this is your first time making beurre noisette, feel free to start at a medium low heat.  This process happens quickly, so do not take your eyes off the saucepan! Brown butter sauce and burnt butter are 2 very different flavors.

12.  Take the brown butter off of the heat and continue to stir for about 20-30 more seconds.  Turn off the heat to your soup and puree with an immersion blender. If you do not have an immersion blender, you can use your regular blender, but be careful, the soup is very hot.  IN batches, puree the soup.
*Remember you can watch the youtube video link above if you would like to see a visual on making a brown butter sauce!

13.  Remove the sage leaves from your brown butter sauce.  Then pour the brown butter into your soup and stir.

You will be tempted to eat right from the spoon you are stirring with as the aroma will waft through the kitchen leading you to feel tempted, but don’t fall into temptation, just wait, I know it’s difficult, but trust me….

14.  Drizzle in heavy cream or creme fraiche (whichever you have available) into your soup.  Sprinkle with a bit of freshly ground pepper.
*NOTE:  If you are serving to a person who would prefer to eliminate this step, just pour the heavy cream or creme fraiche directly into the bowls of those who would prefer this added step!

15.  The Best Part:  Grab a large bowl, a large spoon, and EAT to your heart’s desire. Oooh Yeaaahh

If you are feeling like you want to enhance the soup even more, opt for homemade croutons to crumble over the top of your soup or do as Laurier Catering and grill a slice of bread to dip.  You can also garnish your soup with the friend sage leaves or crumple the sage leaves into your soup.

Servings:  This is dependent on if this is your main course or if you are serving as a compliment to a main course.  We had this soup for dinner 2-3 times throughout the week and we brought the soup to lunch.  I also shared this soup with a friend.  You may choose to get a larger squash and serve this to friends or family.  If you choose a smaller squash, you can also include less liquid.  Leftovers are always delicious and the soup develops more flavor as it sits overnight….

I think after writing this post, I need to make this soup again!  I feel hungry!  Good thing I have a squash being delivered from William’s Farm in Marion from the Victor S.E.A.S. Club fundraiser!

I hope you enjoy this recipe.  Please let me know if you have tried this recipe and what your thoughts are.  If you have tweaked any steps in the recipe and it worked well for you, I would also like to hear. I hope you were inspired!  I also recommend going to Laurier Catering for some more inspiration and amazing tasting menus!  There new menu should be coming out shortly for the month of December!

*NOTE: Any bold and underlined business name has a link attached to it for you to click on!