And The Winner Is...

...not me!!!


This weekend was the 2nd Annual Athens' Farmers' Market "Squash It!" Cooking Contest. In an attempt to get over my fear/phobic inability to try things at which my success is not guaranteed, I decided to enter.


As far as first cooking contests go, it was pretty fun. I like the idea of cooking for unknown diners. It gives the time I spend in the kitchen prepping everything an exiting immediacy. It raised money for the "Friends of the AFM," and since the squash had to be bought at the market, it also helped out the local growers. Once at the judging tent, I enjoyed seeing the different entries (though everyone's 'go-to' squash recipe seemed simply to be covering said squash with cheese and bread crumbs and baking it - or some variation thereof).

I, however, wanted to make something with squash as the dominant flavor rather than a filler for something else. I think I came up with a delicious little soup (though the judges begged to differ). All asterisked ingredients were bought at the AFM.

No-Prize Winning Spicy Butternut Soup with Roasted Red Pepper Cream

for the soup:
3-4 cups butternut squash, peeled and chopped**
2 tablespoons safflower oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped**
2 large garlic cloves, minced (I pulled out all the stops this time and used real garlic!)**
2 teaspoons cumin
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
1 1/2 granny smith apples, cored and chopped
2 carrots, sliced
3 celery stalks, chopped
4 cups vegetable stock
finely chopped flat-leaf parsley, for garnish**

for the cream:
1 vacuum-packed box of extra firm tofu (I used Mori-Nu)
1 teaspoon paprika
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 large red pepper, roasted**

to prepare:
Turn the oven on to broil. Wash the red pepper well and place on a cookie sheet under the broiler. Turn often until the pepper is blackened all the way around. Remove from the over and place in an air tight container for about 15 minutes to continue steaming.
While the pepper is broiling and steaming, chop the onion, garlic, and jalapeno and set aside. Chop the squash, carrots, apples, and celery and set aside. Heat the oil in a large pot. Add the onion, garlic, and jalapeno. Saute until the onion is soft.
Add the apples, squash, carrots, celery, and broth to the pot. Bring to a rolling boil then reduce heat to a simmer for 20-25 minutes or until all the veggies are soft.
While the soup is simmering, remove the skin, stem, and seeds from the roasted pepper. Place the cleaned pepper, the tofu, paprika, and salt into the blender and mid on high until smooth. Set aside in a separate bowl and rinse the blender.
When the soup is done, transfer in batches to the rinsed blender. Blend well and return to the pot over low heat.
Serve in bowls with a dollop of cream and a sprinkle of the parsley.

Roomie loved this soup, but he predicted I wouldn't win. "It's too spicy to win," he guessed. And for as warm a day as Saturday was, he was probably right. This soup has a great kick to it and would be better served in early winter rather than late summer. Maybe serve it in bread bowls so there's plenty of starch to balance the heat. You could probably cut the amount of jalapeno or chipotle to temper the spice too.

Despite not winning, I took consolation in the fact that mine was the only vegan entry and the first soup to be finished by the public taste-testers. Both the other soups had chicken stock as the base, one with cheddar and one with creme fraiche. I had to laugh when a taster asked if the other soups were veg-friendly and the guy next to me said, "yeah it only has a little chicken stock in it."

My final judgment: I failed at my first cooking contest but I still like them. I think I'll keep at it until I have a couple of ribbons. If at first you don't succeed, cook, cook some more.