Summer Squash Soup

I almost forgot about this soup until my cousin's wife was telling me about her summer squash bounty.  With the rainy days we have in store here in Boston, it seems like the perfect time to whip up another batch!

This soup took me completely by surprise!  The ingredients sounded so simple but the flavors married to create something much more complex.  And the cumin browned butter.  Wow.  Absolutely delicious.  I'm sure you'll find many uses if there's any left over ;)

Summer Squash Soup
adapted from 101 cookbooks
Serves 2-3 (small bowls)

This could certainly be scaled up to accommodate any bounty of summer squash you may have ;)

1/2t cumin seeds
2T butter
fine grain sea salt
~1T butter, olive oil, or combination
1 small onion, chopped
2-3 roasted garlic cloves (I had these on hand, could certainly use 1 clove of raw garlic, minced)
1/2lb small yukon gold potatoes, cut so uniform size
3/4lb summer squash, cut in half then sliced (ending up with halfmoons)
1 1/2c  stock(veggie or chicken)/water, or more if necessary
1/2c buttermilk

Heat a small skillet over medium heat.  Add cumin seeds and toast until they are fragrant.  Set aside, then grind (spice/coffee grinder, mortar and pestle...).  In the skillet used to toast the cumin, melt butter and cook until browned and smells amazing.  Remove from heat and stir in the cumin along with a pinch of salt.  Set aside in a warm place so it remains liquid for serving.

For the soup, heat butter/oil in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat.  Add onion and a dash of salt.  Saute until onions get translucent.  Stir in potatoes and squash (and garlic, if raw) and cook until the squash starts to soften up, ~10min.  Add in enough stock to just cover the squash and potatoes and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer until the potatoes are tender, ~20-30min.  Remove from the heat and puree (blender, hand blender, food processor...  just be careful when hot!).  Stir in the buttermilk, taste and add more salt if necessary.  Adjust consistency with more stock if desired.  Serve topped with cumin butter.


Any more good ideas for summer squash??  I'm thinking it could totally go into some sort of cake like zucchini...