Butternut Squash and Apple Soup

In this brief article I'm going to give you a recipe that my mother used to cook for us as a starter during the colder months of the year. The recipe is butternut squash and apple soup. Butternut squash soup can be made without any apples but I find that the sweetness of the squash can be too much sometimes, so adding an apple can help balance things up!

This should take less than 30 minutes to prepare...

Ingredients:
1 large or 2 small butternut squash (approx 1lb)
4 tart green apples
1 large onion
1/2 tsp. rosemary
1/4 tsp. marjoram
4.5 (10.5 oz.) cans chicken broth (double strength)
3 cans water
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 c. heavy cream
1 1/2 tbsp. parsley, freshly chopped
Thick bread

Method:
1. Peel and seed the butternut squash before cutting it in half.

2. Peel, core and chop apple roughly into cubes.

3. Peel the onion and chop coarsely.

4. Add the chopped squash and apples to a saucepan, add the rosemary, marjoram, chicken broth, water, bread, salt and pepper and keep on a medium heat until the squash is tender.

5. Add the mixture to a blender (do in several batches, not filling blender more than 1/4 full) and puree until smooth.

6. Return the soup to the saucepan and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer for a further five minutes. Serve hot with fresh parsley on top. I usually also serve with a rather large helping of chunky bread, to help soak it all up!