Raw January Day 25 /26: Spicy Winter Veggie Soup

Mmmm....soup. I have to say, steamy soups and slow-stewed veggies are what I've missed the most during this experimental month. I mean, what was I thinking going raw in the month of January?

The good news is this has sparked my creativity more and forced me to come up with alternate ways to get that warm feeling in my belly. This soup is one of them. I had decided after butchering a kabocha square that came in my organic box that the silly thing wasn't worth it. There was a lot of hacking and chopping and at the end all I had was barely a cup of usable flesh. Originally this was going to be a squash/mango soup; however, I was discouraged. My eyes turned to the half a head of cauliflower, and I thought, "Why the hell not?" Into my dear, sweet Cuisinart it went with the rest of the ingredients I had assembled. A few taste-tests later, and

here you have it.

I imagine any winter squash would do....butternut comes to mind, of course. The heat from the serrano does a nice job of giving the feeling of warmth without over-powering the soup. I think this would also make a nice take on bruschetta (but hey, I think everything is better on bread!).

In other news, my new toy arrived today. I have two more nights at the job (and a desperate need to rearrange the kitchen) before I can use it, but needless to say I am very excited to set it up (right angles, people....right angles!).

Winter Veggie Soup

Ingredients:

1/2 kabocha squash, seeds removed, peeled, cut into 1" cubes (or about 1 cup of your favorite, easier to butcher squash)

1/2 cauliflower, cored, cut into 1" cubes

1 mango, peeled, core removed, cut into 1" cubes

1 serrano pepper, stem removed, seeds intact

8 fresh basil leaves

juice of 1/2 a lime

1/2 tbs dried lemongrass

1/4 tsp salt (adjust to taste)

1/4 tsp black pepper

2 tbs almond milk

Directions:

In a food processor, pulse the squash and cauliflower until the ingredients are finely chopped. Add remaining ingredients and process until puréed. The soup will have the consistency of cream of wheat cereal; if necessary add a tablespoon or so of water to achieve this texture (I didn't need it). Chill for at least two hours, then serve. Makes about eight 1-cup servings.