Carrots: Fall Wild Rice and Butternut Squash Soup

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Something about the onset of fall just makes me crave soup. It must be nostalgic for me as I remember a number of chilly fall Saturdays spent huddled around the kitchen table eating chicken noodle soup or chili in my post-soccer game uniform, minus the cleats. While this soup doesn't have the meat in it that I grew up on, I promise you won't miss it. My carnivore husband is proof of that. 

 This Fall Wild Rice and Butternut Squash Soup is a good-for-the-soul, stick-to-your-ribs kind of soup. It will make the house smell heavenly, and it will warm you from the inside out.

Though this soup is in part a nod to those Saturdays from my childhood, I also created this recipe based on my memory of a chicken and wild rice soup that was a regular option on Wednesdays in college...and truthfully, one of the only palatable dishes the sorority served. I remember trudging across campus on a cool fall day during the first quarter and smelling the soup even before I walked in the door. 

This version uses butternut squash and other veggies instead of chicken, but you definitely won't miss the meat. It's a sort of chickenless soup for the soul.

Here's the recipe.

Fall Wild Rice and Butternut Squash Soup

Ingredients
1 1/2 medium onions, chopped
2-3 medium carrots, chopped
3 tablespoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into cubes
1 1/4 cup wild rice, rinsed and drained
1 15-oz can of cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 bunch of celery, chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
2 teaspoons pink Himalayan sea salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
8 cups low sodium vegetable broth
2 cups chopped kale
3/4 cup cashews, soaked in hot water for an hour, or in cold water overnight

Method
Soak the cashews in about 2 cups of hot water for about an hour, or while you chop up the other vegetables. Set aside.

In a large frying pan, heat the olive oil and then sauté the onions, carrots, celery, and garlic until the vegetables are translucent. Let cool.

While the vegetables cool, drain the cashews from the water and blend with 1 cup fresh water in a high-powered blender until smooth and creamy (should resemble cream). Refrigerate until the end of the cooking process. Remove from the fridge about 15 minutes before you need to add it to the soup to let the cream become more viscous.

Transfer the cooled vegetables into a large slow cooker. Add the rest of the ingredients, except the cashews and kale. Cook on low for 8 hours.

When the soup is done, check the seasoning. Then, add in the cashew cream and give it a good stir. Add the chopped kale and stir again. Turn on high for 30 minutes.

Serve with rosemary sourdough bread to bring out the herb flavors.