Squash Soup

This recipe is out of this world and tends to last awhile unless you have a big family. It is a hit when hosting because it looks and tastes high class. Meanwhile, you were able to accomplish many chores waiting for the squash to bake. This is incredibly easy, delicious, and has warmed our home this winter. (Note: We adapted this recipe from a Rachel Ray original that was slightly less Erskine friendly.)

Prep time: at least one hour
Serves: lots

1 buttercup squash (2.5 to 4 pounds)
1/8 cup olive oil
4 garlic cloves, peeled
1 tsp basil
1 tsp oregano
1 large yellow potato
2 1/2 cups Cambpell's chicken broth (or another brand without MSG - monosodium glutamate)
sea salt
fresh ground pepper
plain natural yogurt (like Astro Balkan Style - only two ingredients!)

1. Preheat oven to 400F. Cut squash in half lengthwise. Spoon out and discard the seeds and stringy middles. Generously brush the entire "meat" side of each half with olive oil. Place two garlic cloves, covered in 1/2 tsp basil and 1/2 tsp orgegano, in the hollow center of each squash half. Flip the squash halves over, placing them face down on baking stone. Bake squash for 45 minutes or until quite tender.

2. While squash is baking, peel and cube yellow potato. Place potato cubes in small sauce pan and bring to a boil. Let the potato boil until quite tender. Drain and set aside.

3. When squash has been removed from oven and is cool enough to touch, remove skin from the squash. (Be careful not to remove too much "meat.") Remove garlic cloves and set aside. Cut the squash into chunks manageable for a blender.

4. Put 1/4 to 1/2 of your total amount of squash and potato into a blender (depending on size of squash and potato). Add proportionate amount of garlic cloves and chicken broth. Grind sea salt and pepper over the mixture to taste. Puree the mixture until well blended. Pour blend into a large sauce or soup pan. Repeat until all squash, potato, garlic, and chicken broth are used up.

5. Once all blended ingredients are in the pot, cook over medium low heat, stirring often, until the soup reaches a reasonable constant temperature. (This is not long.)

6. Ladle soup into bowls. Drop a dollop of yogurt into the center of each bowl of soup. If desired, add chopped chives or green onion to garnish.

Good Cookies

I'll bet you never thought you'd see anything like this on this blog. Well, even good eaters have those times when they cave. Ours was the other night when we found a few ingredients lurking around our house-sitting home. Namely, we found chocolate chips. Everything else, you'll note, is very normal for us. On with the show:

Prep time: 10 minutes
Makes: 12-15 cookies

1/2 cup margarine (or butter)
2 heaping spoonfuls (or dollops, for the classy among us) natural peanut butter
1 package milk chocolate chips
2 cups (give or take) rolled oats

1) Melt margarine in medium saucepan over low heat.

2) Add peanut butter to melted margarine, stirring often, until melted and blended together. (Note: Do not cheat on peanut butter! These turn out so well because they're completely delicious without being overly rich. Trust me; you'll LOVE these the way they are.)

3) Add chocolate chips to mixture. Stir often until melted and well blended. Remove from heat. Let it sit for five minutes.

4) Once the mixture has set a little, add the oats. Stir until oats are evenly coated.

5) With a large spoon, divide the mixture into cookies on wax paper. Chill and serve. Enjoy with great delight.

(Note: You can play around with the measurements. We did not measure; we just have an eye for approximation.)