Here's what you'll need: 

1 large onion, sliced 

1 T butter 

1 large butternut squash, roasted and set aside (refer to previous post) 

1 cup apple cider 

2 cups chicken stock 

5 sage leaves, few extra for garnish 

1 t nutmeg 

Salt & pepper to taste 

1/2 cup cream, optional 

Diced apple, sautéed in browned butter for garnish 

Sour cream, for garnish 

Fresh grated cinnamon, for garnish 

The first thing you wanna do is get a medium sauce pot big enough to hold all of these ingredients in. Yes, I said all. This is going to be easy. Start by melting your butter in the pot on medium-high heat and then add the onions. Cook the onions down until they get a nice golden brown color, about 5 minutes. Once your onions are done, you can go ahead and add the butternut squash, apple cider, chicken stock, sage and nutmeg. Lower the heat to medium and let it come to a simmer. Give it a nice turn once everything gets bubbly and continue cooking on low with a simmer for about 20 minutes. What this does is softens up the squash and gets all of the flavors blending together. 

After your pot has been cooking for 20 minutes, it’s now time to blend everything. There are two ways of doing this: you can use a conventional blender or a hand blender. These little hand blades, or immersion blenders, are easily one of my favorite tools in the kitchen. To be able to puree or mix anything, anywhere like that is really a game changer for a chef. Puree the mix until it becomes silky smooth, free of any lumps or chunks. In the final stage of pureeing, pour in your heavy cream and watch the color brighten and the texture thicken; you don't wanna miss it, it’s pretty magical. Next, season with salt and pepper. This soup can be eaten immediately or held in the fridge for about a week. 

Tags: fall, comfort food, soup, squash, seasonal, hot