I don’t cook with acorn squash all that often…I don’t know why, I just don’t. I guess I go through phases with my preferred squash but for the most part I am a butternut girl or Kabocha but I can never seem to get my hands on them. I had this acorn squash given to me and decided to try roasting it a little different from how I normally would (Sliced in half and seeded) I did it in thin slices because I wanted the soup to have more of that yummy roasted flavour. I was quite happy with how it turned out and so were my dinner guests.

Serves 6

• 1 acorn squash, cut in half, seeded and then cut into 1/2 inch slices
• 1 onion, skin removed and halved
• 2 potato, cut into 1/2 inch slices
• 1 head of garlic
• 2 tsp cumin
• heavy pinch of chipotle chili powder
• pinch of cinnamon
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 3 1/2 cups vegetable broth
• 1/2 cup whole milk or cream (leave this out if you want to keep this dish vegan)
• pepper to taste
• 1 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• safflower oil

Preheat the oven to 400. Cut and slice the squash, potato and onion. Toss with safflower oil and lay on baking sheet. Take the garlic and remove the excess layers of skin. Chop about 1/4 inch off the top of the bulb. Drizzle the top with a little oil then wrap in foil and place on the baking sheet. Let everything bake for 30 minutes flipping half way (obviously you do not have to flip the wrapped garlic). Once cooked, remove from the oven and let cool for a minute. Peel off the skin from the squash. In a large pot over medium heat, add the spices and stir them around for about 1 minute. Add the broth, squash, potato, onion and the roasted cloves of garlic. Now using an immersion blender, pulse everything until smooth. Add the chickpeas and give a few more quick pulses with the blender, making sure to not fully blend all the chickpeas. Allow to simmer for a few minutes then stir in the cider vinegar and lemon juice. Remove from heat and add the cream. At this point do a final taste test and see if you think it needs a little more salt or pepper, if so sprinkle it in then serve topped with some fresh parsley. Enjoy!

I’m so excited about this soup! Not just because it’s delicious but because it marks the beginning of fall cooking in my home. Hello yummy homemade soups and stews and chili and pot pies and and and…..oh how I love cold weather cooking!!!

Serves 6-8

• 1 large cooking onion
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 4 cobs of corn, corn removed from cob
• 2 large red potato, chopped into small bite sized pieces
• 1 tbsp ginger, grated
• 1 jalapeño, seeded and diced
• 1 stalk of lemongrass, minced or grated
• 1 litre of low sodium veg broth
• 1 can of coconut milk
• 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
• 1 lime, juiced
• safflower oil for frying
• salt and pepper to taste
• pickled jalapeño for topping
• avocado for topping

In a large pot over med-high heat, add the safflower oil. Let it heat for a minute then add the onions. Sauté for about 5 minutes, until tender and beginning to brown. Add the garlic, corn and potato. Cook stirring frequently for about 10 minutes or until the potato is tender. Add the ginger, jalapeño and lemongrass. Cook for 4-5 minutes. Add the broth. Cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for 10 minutes. Add the coconut milk and cilantro. Bring back to a boil then remove from heat. Using an immersion blender give the chowder a few good pulses. Add the lime juice and season with salt and pepper. Serve topped with pickled jalapeño and some diced avocado. Enjoy!

*Want to mix it up a bit? Try adding any of the following to your chowder-

• shredded chicken
• diced tomato, for topping
• swap out the potato for cauliflower
• sriracha instead of the pickled jalapeño

2 tbsp butter

2 chicken thighs,chopped then shredded

1 medium onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 heaping tbsp fresh grated ginger

3 tbsp Thai green curry paste

2 cups crimini mushrooms, chopped

1 cup kale, chopped

4 cups chicken stock

1-2 large handfuls Thai Rice Stick Noodles

1/2 or 1 can coconut milk depending on how creamy you like it.

1 tbsp fish sauce

1/2 stalk lemon grass, minced

1 1/2 limes, juice of

1 heaping cup cilantro, finely minced

*note: Spice this soup up a bit by adding 1-2 tbsp of thai chili sauce or sriracha.

Melt the butter over med high heat in a large pot. Add the chicken and cook for 2-3 minutes or until the chicken has changed colour, remove chicken from the pot. Let cool slightly and shred, set aside. Add the onions and saute until translucent. Add the garlic, ginger and curry paste. Return the shredded chicken to the pot. Cook for one minute then add the mushrooms and kale. Cook until softened but not mushy. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Add the rice noodles, cook for 2 minutes. Reduce heat to medium. Add the coconut milk, fish sauce and lemon grass, let it simmer for about 6 minutes. Stir in the lime juice and cilantro. Cook for one more minute then remove from heat and serve.

*Best served with a side of Beer Bread!

Yesterday was cold and rainy. It’s the end of May and I figured that this weather was not going to last much longer. I decided to make the most of it and cook up my last batch of soup before saying goodbye until the fall.

• 1 med butternut squash, cubed
• 1/2 cabbage, chopped
• 1 can diced tomato (if you want less tomato flavour strain the tomato before adding to the soup)
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 med onion, diced
• 2 cups of black eyed peas ( I used the canned ones)
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 3 bay leaves
• 5 cups of veg broth (or any liquid, water, beef broth…etc)
• 1 1/2  tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp chipotle chilli powder
• 1 tso dried oregano

In a large pot, warm the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and saute until it begins to brown. Now add the garlic, cabbage, squash, tomatoes and broth. Reduce heat to simmer, cover and cook for about 30 minutes or so (until the squash is cooked). Now add the spices and the beans; stir until combined. Cook another ten minutes allowing the flavors to blend. Remove from heat. If you like it a bit thicker and smoother (I do) give the soup a quick pulse with your immersion blender…not a ton but just enough to thicken the broth. Salt and pepper to taste then top with some avocado and goat cheese. Enjoy!

I love Pea soup, my Husband loves pea soup. Unfortunately we do not love the same Pea soup. My favourite is Habiton pea soup in a can mmmmmmm! I love it so much it is guaranteed that I will not be able to wait for it to cook before I have jumped in spoon first to the cold pot of soup. Kegan on the other hand was born in Montreal and grew up eating and loving traditional french-Canadian split pea soup. Because of this I have learned to love and appreciate both styles. Recently we spent a week at his family cottage in the Laurentians, it was cold….. but oh so cozy and we spent our time eating every comfort food you could imagine. Meat pie,Chicken pot pie,lasagna, Mac’n cheese, shepards pie and Split pea soup from a local restaurant. It is this soup that I have tried to recreate. I am not saying it’s the same…at all but it’s the same style and it made Kegan very happy.

•  2 tbl butter
• 2 ½ cups of dried yellow split peas
• 1 small bunch of carrots,peeled and chopped
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 med Onion,diced
• 1 Leek,chopped
• 1 smoked ham hock ( 1lb )
• 1tsp dried Thyme
• 1tsp dried Savoury
• Salt and pepper to taste

1. In a large pot sweat the onions,leeks,carrots and butter over   med-high heat until the onions become translucent about 5-7 min.
2. Add water ,split peas,ham hock,bay leaves,thyme and savoury.
3. Bring soup to a boil over high heat then reduce to med-low and simmer.Place lid on pot and let it go for about 3 hours or until the peas are soft and turning into a puree.
4. Remove the ham hock and pull the meat off of the bone. Now you can cut it into chunks. I like smaller chunks but if you like a bigger bite of meat go for it! Set meat aside ( do not put back into the pot as you will be using the immersion blender and will lose the yummy ham chunks )
5. remove the bay leaves.
6. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
7. Now you can use that immersion blender and make the soup as smooth as you like.If you prefer a chunkier soup skip this step.
8. Last but not least add the Ham and serve!

* Please note I used Ham that I had pre-cooked and in the freezer ( gasp! ) I know this sounds gross but I have a good reason for having a boat load of frozen pre-cooked ham in my freezer…it was from my baby shower that I didn’t get to go to as my water broke the morning of the shower. All the food was kindly packed up and sent to my home and whatever could be frozen was frozen.