Sans Chocolate. I promise.

A few people have brought it to my attention that my last three posts were about chocolate.  I became slightly concerned, questioning if there was a problem with my level of chocolate consumption.  I was then told by a kind soul that I do not have a problem per-say, just a fond affection of chocolate.  Phew. Thank you. Thank you for making it all alright. I promise you that I DO bake/cook/eat things other than brownies, chocolate waffles, and chocolate cookies, although I did start drinking chocolate milk again this week as a post workout recovery drink.  My goal today is to provide you with a new recipe in the form of soup and it just happens to be chocolate free.  Imagine that!  I made this last Sunday and have enjoyed coming home from long days of work and class all week to an already prepared dinner. This soup is not bursting with a wide array of flavors or spices, it is more of a comforting soup. I don't know if that makes sense to you like it does for me, but what I'm trying to say is this warms you up from the inside and gives you a feeling of satisfaction.
I had one minor problem that could have turned into a real disaster while making this soup. I do not have an immersion blender so I used my regular blender; which just so happens to have a cover that does not seal tightly. I did not find this out until I was using it to make this soup.  As I was blending batches of the squash and potatoes that had been boiling in broth, hot liquid came spouting through the cover of the blender and all over my hand.  OUCH.  Thank goodness I was able to get the blender unplugged before I had hot soup all over the kitchen.  Lesson learned: be VERY, VERY careful when filling your blender with hot liquid and put a towel over the cover in case of a leak.  I made one change to the recipe, I used chicken broth instead of vegetable stock.  Heidi is a vegetarian, but I prefer the flavor of chicken broth.

 Buttermilk Squash Soup  (Heidi Swanson, www.101cookbooks.com)

1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/4 cup / 2 oz / 55g unsalted butter
fine grain sea salt

3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 medium yellow onions, chopped
2 medium garlic cloves

1 pound / 16 oz / 450 g potatoes, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
2 1/2 pounds / 40 oz / 1+kg yellow summer squash, cut into 1/2-inch slices
4 cups / 950 ml good tasting vegetable stock
1 cup / 240 ml buttermilk
1 bunch of chives, chopped

In a skillet, over medium heat, toast the cumin seeds until they are fragrant. Just a minute or two. Use a mortar and pestle to pound the seeds into a fine powder. Alternately, you can use an electric spice grinder. Set aside. In the same skillet, melt the butter and cook until it's brown and gives off a deliciously nutty aroma. Remove from heat, stir the cumin into the butter along with a generous couple pinches of salt, then set aside in a warm place. You want the butter to stay liquid until you're ready to use it.

To make the soup, heat the butter in your largest pot or stockpot over medium-high heat. Add the onions, garlic, and a bit of salt. Saute for a few minutes, or until the onions start to get translucent. Stir in the potatoes and squash and cook for another 7-10 minutes, or until the squash starts to soften up. Stir in 3 1/2 cups of the stock (most of it) - the stock should just barely cover the vegetables. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are tender, roughly another 25 minutes. Remove the soup from heat, puree completely with a hand blender, then stir in the buttermilk. If you need to thin the soup out with a bit more stock, you can do so. Taste and add more salt if needed. Serve each bowl topped with plenty of the cumin butter, and a sprinkling of chives.