Squash & Pear Soup

Ingredients

4 T Olive oil

2 T unsalted butter

1 lg. onion diced

2 ripe Bosc pears, peeled cored and cut into 1 inch cubes ( I like nice ripe Bartlett's )

4 oz crystallized ginger fine dice ( I used maybe half of this )

1/2 tsp. fresh ground pepper ( white and green peppercorns )

1 medium butternut squash ( peeled, seeded and cut into 1 inch cubes) I just cut in half and bake.

2 quarts low sodium chicken stock, heated ( as usual I use McKay's )

1/2 tsp. sriracha ( I used 1 clove of garlic crushed and 1 tsp of Green chili powder..

garnish when serving with cream and a good balsamic drizzled on top.

Procedure

in 8 qt heavy pan, heat olive oil and cook onion until translucent, Add pears, ginger and pepper and cook until pears are lightly browned, stirring frequently to prevent scorching. Stir in the squash and chicken stock, bring to a boil, Carefully pour soup into a blender and process until smooth. I use my hand wand blender. Return to the heavy pan and reheat, season. Serves 8 to 10 people..