Vegan Eats and Treats

Butternut squash turned into loaded potato soup? 

You read that right! Long story short, I do not like butternut squash. I somehow ended up with two steam bags that expired today! So I had to find out what to do with it before it was too late. Butter nut squash has a slightly sweet, nutty, silky taste when cooked correctly. I decided that with those flavor notes and of course the color, it reminded me of cheese! What goes with cheese? Duh, potatoes! I added broccoli, candied tempeh bacon, chives, and a tofu sour cream drizzle on top to make it loaded! 

Ingredients

4 cups steamed butternut squash (cut into cubes)
1 celery stalk (diced)
1/2 yellow onion (diced)
5 cups dairy free milk
5 Tbs nutritional yeast
5 Tbs rice vinegar
3 tsp onion powder
3 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp pepper
4 medium sized golden potatoes (peeled and diced)
3 Tbs dairy free butter
2 cups frozen/fresh broccoli
more salt and pepper to taste

Directions 

1. In a large pot over medium heat, drizzle a bit of oil in the pan. Chop celery and onion and add to the pan until translucent. Add in steamed butternut squash and saute with onions and celery until everything is fully cooked. Place into a blender with the cashew milk, nutritional yeast, rice vinegar, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Blend until completely smooth.

2. Place blended butternut squash mix back into pot. Add in potatoes and dairy free butter. Let the soup come to a boil, and turn heat down to a simmer and cover with a lid. Let simmer for 30-40 min, or until potatoes are fully cooked. In the last 10 min of cooking add in the broccoli and add more seasonings if desired.

Serve with tempeh bacon, green onion, tofu sour cream, vegan shredded cheese, chives, crusty bread, whatever your heart desires! And most importantly enjoy!