Two Great Recipes for the Holiday

You probably have a collection of great recipes that fit the holidays, but you can always handle one more, yes?  We thought so.  Here are a couple we like a lot.  One, a soup/starter and the other — Pumpkin, cheesecake style.  Enjoy, and Happy Holidays!

Butternut Squash Soup

Serve cups of butternut squash soup with orange spiced cashews.(serves 6)

Ingredients:

1 orange

3 thin slices peeled fresh ginger

2 teaspoons coriander seeds

10 whole black peppercorns

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 spanish onion, cut into ½-inch pieces

Pinch of cayenne pepper

6 cups homemade or low-sodium canned chicken stock

1 sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

2 small (about 1¾ pounds each) butternut squash, peeled, halved and seeded, and flesh cut into 1-inch pieces

Orange Spiced Cashews, for garnish

Directions:

Using a vegetable peeler, remove zest from orange in long strips; reserve flesh for another use. Make a bouquet garni by wrapping zest, ginger, coriander and peppercorns in a piece of cheesecloth; tie kitchen twine around top of bundle.

In a medium stockpot, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion and cayenne; cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is soft and starts to brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Add bouquet garni; cook 2 minutes more. Add stock; bring to a boil.

Add sweet potato and squash to pot; return to a gentle simmer, and partially cover. Cook until vegetables are just beginning to fall apart, about 25 minutes. Remove from heat, and let cool slightly.

In a blender, puree soup in batches, being careful not to fill more than halfway. Pour soup into a clean pot; cook over medium heat until just heated through. Serve garnished with nuts, if desired.

Pumpkin Cheesecake

Crust:

1 ¾ cup graham cracker crumbs

3 tablespoon light brown sugar

½ teaspoon cinnamon

1 stick softened butter

Mix together and press in a 9-inch springform pan

Filling:

24 ounces cream cheese

1 ½ cup sugar

15-ounce can of pumpkin

4 eggs

¼ cup sour cream

½ teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

2 tablespoons flour (all-purpose)

1 teaspoon vanilla

Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add sugar and beat till well mixed. Add pumpkin, eggs, sour cream, cinnamon, nutmeg and mix well. Add flour and vanilla; mix till smooth. Pour in crust. Bake at 350 degrees for one hour. Let set to cool and remove from pan and refrigerate until chilled.