Curried Butternut Squash Soup – Meatless Monday Recipe of the Week

Warm up your Meatless Monday with this hearty soup!  It’s packed with fall’s bountiful phytonutrients and is rich in potassium, beta-carotene and fiber.  Turmeric, a yellow spice with an earthy flavor, contains potent anti-inflammatory, immune supportive and cancer fighting compounds.  Combining it with black pepper helps increase the bioavailability, or our body’s ability to absorb these wellness promoting gems, by up to 1,000 times!

Using a crock pot can help make it quick and easy to create a healthy weeknight dinner with plenty of leftovers you can freeze.  Prep the night before, add your ingredients in the morning and come home to a delicious meal that’s ready to eat!

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp coconut oil
1 butternut squash
2 organic green apples
1 cup/8 oz dried white beans or 1 BPA free canned
1 cup dried lentils
2 organic potatoes
2 cloves garlic
1 onion
4 cups juice pulp veggie broth, thai infused pulp broth or organic vegetable broth
4 cups water (or 2 cups coconut milk + 2 cups water)
1/4 teaspoon sea or Himalayan salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon yellow curry powder
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
2 Tbsp chopped parsley

2 cups quinoa or brown rice
4 cups water (or 2 cups broth + 2 cups water)

Directions:
Soak dry beans overnight in crock pot. Rinse and drain.

Add lentils and soaked beans to crock pot.  (I used a combination of green and red lentils.)  If using canned beans, add along with the vegetables after draining and rinsing.

Wash and peel apples and potatoes.  Core apple and discard seeds. (Leave peels on for extra fiber, electrolytes, minerals and antioxidants). Cut into cubes.

Wash and peel butternut squash. Cut squash into chunks.

Add broth, apple, potato, garlic, onion, squash, coconut oil, spices (except parsley, save for garnish).

Turn on crock pot and set to low for 10 hours.

Cook quinoa or rice on stovetop or in rice cooker (2 cups rice with 4 cups water or 2 cups broth and 2 cups water).

After the soup has cooked, blend in batches then return to crock pot and mix with unblended soup.

Serve over quinoa or brown rice.

Garnish with parsley.

Enjoy!