Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Canadian Thanksgiving


Autumn is my favourite time of year. Although I am a proud Westerner, the Fall in Ontario is pretty amazing.



One of my favourite things to do at this time of year is to walk around Parliament Hill and the surrounding area.


Canadian Thanksgiving is a sure sign of Autumn. Here's some of the meal I made for it....

Last year when making Butternut Squash Soup, I realized I had bought more squash than needed. I decided to partially cook it (boil it) and then flash freeze it. It worked out perfectly as a base for a delicious recipe from Whole Foods Market

Classic Butternut Squash Soup


2 tablespoons olive oil
2/3 cup diced carrot (about 1 (8-inch) large carrot)
1/2 cup diced celery (about 1 (11-inch) large stalk)
2/3 cup diced onion (about 1 medium onion)
4 cups cubed butternut squash (about 1 medium squash)
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
4 to 6 cups low-sodium chicken broth (I used this broth)
Sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste

Method
Heat olive oil in a large soup pot. Add carrot, celery and onion. Cook until vegetables have begun to soften and onion turns translucent, 3 to 4 minutes. Add butternut squash and thyme. Stir to combine with vegetables. Stir in chicken broth and season with salt and pepper.

Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until squash is fork-tender, about 30 minutes. Use an immersion blender to puree soup. Alternatively, let the soup cool slightly and carefully puree in batches in a traditional blender.

Along with the soup, I served a pomegranate salad...


roast chicken and sweet potatoes:

Everything came out really well... Except for the dessert. I'll tell you about that in my next post.

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13 comments:

KennyT said...

Autumn in Canada is so beautiful!

Hopie said...

Man, that wooded path makes me so envious. I feel like we've skipped fall here and gone directly to winter. It's gray and cold (not brisk, more like damp cold). That sounds like a wonderful meal. Butternut squash soup is always the best.

Julia said...

That meal looks great! Yummy soup, pomegranates in the salad, roast chicken!mmm.

And the fall looks beautiful!

Beth said...

There’s just that certain special something about the fall, isn’t there? Although I do love the fact I live in a country with four seasons. However, the older I get, the more winter loses its appeal!

kat said...

Yum, I'm really looking forward our Thanksgiving here too, I just love Thanksgiving dinner

That Girl said...

Since we don't have Autumn here, I love living vicariously through your pictures.

NĂºria said...

How beautiful Canada must be! I wish I could visit some day. I would choose Autumn without hesitation!

I made nearly the same Butternut soup yesterday but it was a puree instead. So yum and delicious.
Happy thanksgiving dears!

pam said...

That looks like the perfect fall dinner!

Valerie Harrison (bellini) said...

Autumn just doesn't have the colourful splendor here in the west that it does in the eastern Canadian provinces...still my favourite time of the year though and butternut squash soup is still a favourite as well.

noble pig said...

Beautiful holiday and food sounds great!

Pam said...

Beautiful photos. Your meal looked wonderful, especially the soup.

hungryandfrozen said...

Happy Thanksgiving! I remember a couple of years ago celebrating Thanksgiving with some Canadians living in New Zealand, was great fun. That soup looks gorgeous and YAY for pomegranates, I love that they start to become really abundant this time of year.

Susan from Food Blogga said...

Oh, I'm envious! We were going to go to Canada for a couple of days on a recent New England trip, but my husband's passport didn't come back in time. It looks so beautiful. Thanks for sharing!

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