This past week, on a particularly rainy and miserable Labor Day, we ventured out to do some shopping, partially to get supplies to make kimchi, and partially for retail therapy. First stop was to get some pho from Than Brothers on 99 in Edmonds, which is a cash-only joint, so we decided to see if the Boo Han korean grocery next door would have some of the kimchi supplies we needed and get some cash out at the same time. We ran across some really beautiful, perfectly Cinderella-like pumpkins, labelled simply “Old Squash” (with some Korean characters that we couldn’t read that probably had a much better description), that we ultimately passed on buying. It’s hard to figure out what to do with a whole big squash! Like the whole kabocha squash that’s been on the kitchen table for about a month…

So, after stops at Toys-R-Us and Target, we headed to H-Mart to get the rest of the kimchi ingredients and saw the same kind of squash from Boo Han, only these were already cut and labelled as “Castilla Squash”. We picked out the smallest piece, which looked to be a little less than 1/4 of a whole squash. We cut and roasted it in olive oil and salt and pepper with 1/4 of the kabocha squash at the same time we were making the short ribs. Friday night, after spending most of the day cleaning, it was nice to be able to have a quick and easy dinner by turning the roasted squash into a savory, creamy soup.

I sauteed some onions and garlic in a little olive oil until they were soft, then added about 2 cups of chicken stock and the roasted squash, along with some salt and pepper. While the soup was simmering, I sliced some rustic bread and drizzled a little olive oil on each slice and stuck them under the broiler until they were just toasted and brown on the edges, then rubbed each one with a clove of fresh garlic. I warmed up the last of our balsamic onions to use as a topping for the toast.

After blending the soup with the immersion blender and stirring in a couple tablespoons of butter, I put a slice of toast into each of the soup bowls to act as a big crouton, and ladeled some soup over the top. The hot soup made the bread nice and soft and the garlic and onions complimented the creamy sweetness of the squash. The pepper in the soup gave it a spicy kick, so it was a little more savory than sweet. Served with a green salad, it was a great simple dinner for a busy day.