I love thyme with roasted root veggies, and I particularly like the white potatoes and yellow squash in this combo--they complement the sweeter butternut squash, sweet potatoes, and carrots nicely. Lemon juice is the perfect finishing touch to brighten things up.
Roasted Winter Vegetable Soup
½ lb. butternut squash, peeled (1 in. pieces)
2 large carrots (½ in. pieces)
1 medium yellow squash (1 ½ in. pieces)
1 medium sweet potato, peeled (1 in. pieces)
1 medium white/gold potato, peeled (1 ½ in. pieces)
3-4 cloves garlic, unpeeled
½ medium onion, quartered
Olive oil
1 - 1½ teaspoons kosher salt
Black pepper
4-5 cups chicken stock
2 teaspoons fresh thyme
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Preheat oven to 400.
Chop vegetables into sizes indicated above. Place on a large baking sheet, and drizzle with about ¼ cup olive oil. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon kosher salt and black pepper to taste. Toss together, and roast for 30-45 minutes or until vegetables are tender and lightly browned. Toss vegetables half way through cooking. When tender, remove from oven, and cool slightly. Peel garlic cloves.
Transfer vegetables and garlic to a food processor, and puree until smooth (add a little stock if needed to help loosen things up). Spoon mixture into a pot, and add chicken stock (to desired consistency) and thyme, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer for about 20 minutes. Remove from heat, add lemon juice, and adjust seasonings.
Serve with good, crusty bread or homemade garlic croutons.
