Vintage Eats Recipe: 1990 Apple and Squash Bisque

What better activity to do on a wintry day than make a delicious, vintage recipe?

I struck gold with “Apple and Squash Bisque.”

A good friend, Susan Connelly, had given me a butternut squash last fall from her garden. “It will keep for several months,” she said.

I took her at her word and stored it in my pantry, not looking for a recipe to use it in until now.

She had used other butternuts in soup and recommended I do the same.

The cookbook I found this recipe in was Betty Crocker’s Old-Fashioned Cookbook (1990). This hardback, 245-page volume has hundreds of recipes ranging from canapes to custards and creams arranged in various chapters. The index makes for easy rifling of a particular recipe.

Susan gave me hints on how to cook the squash:

1. Place it whole in a casserole dish with 1” of water.
2. Place the pan in an oven and bake for 1-1.5 hours at 350 degrees or until a knife can be inserted easily.
3. Remove from oven and allow to cool before attempting to peel and cube.

And it was that easy!

You can see my knife plunging into the now-soft interior.

I then cubed the pieces and proceeded with the recipe.

Upon conducting a little research, I found butternut squash is low in calories but high in fiber and many nutrients, including vitamin A, vitamin C, magnesium, and potassium.

And, contrary to what many believe, it is not a vegetable but a fruit. A Powerhouse Fruit!

Besides the yummy taste, it was gratifying to know this entire recipe was made at a low cost. Other than the squash, the only other significant cost was the apples. I figure the cost per serving to be less than a dollar!

I didn’t have apples so I made applesauce using my old-fashioned colander (I think that’s what it’s called). See My Notes for more information on this process.

This soup is adaptable for various diets. It could be made vegetarian with vegetable broth instead of chicken and other types of non-dairy options could be used instead of regular sour cream.

I plan to purchase butternut squashes at my farmer’s market next summer to make this recipe again!

I tweaked this recipe quite a bit so be sure to read My Notes at the end.

1 can (14 ounce) ready-to-serve chicken broth

1 butternut squash* (about 2 pounds), pared and cubed

½ c. chopped onion

2 c. applesauce

½ t. ground ginger

¼ t. salt

1 c. sour cream

1. Heat chicken broth to boiling in 3-quart saucepan; add squash and onion.
2. Cover and heat to boiling; reduce heat.
3. Boil 15 to 20 minutes or until squash is tender.
4. Stir in applesauce, ginger, and salt. Place 1/3 to ½ of the mixture at a time in blender container or work bowl of food processor fitted with steel blade. Cover and blend until smooth.

5. Return soup to saucepan; stir in sour cream. Heat over low heat, stirring occasionally, until hot; do not boil.

6. Garnish with additional sour cream and sprinkle with poppy seed if desired.

6 servings (about 1 ¼ c. each)

*2 packages (10 ounce each) frozen squash, thawed, can be substituted for butternut squash.

Microwave directions:

Place chicken broth, squash, and onion in 3-quart microwavable casserole.

Cover tightly and microwave on high 13-16 minutes, stirring after 5 minutes, until tender.

Stir in applesauce, ginger, and salt.

Blend as directed above.

Return soup to casserole; stir in 1 c. sour cream.

Microwave uncovered on medium-high (70%) 6-8 minutes, stirring every 2 minutes, until hot.

My Notes:

1. I used chicken bouillon dissolved in water (1 cube per cup) instead of a can of broth.
2. I mashed five apples to make the applesauce, then threw in the peels for extra fiber.
3. Needing a bit more flavor, I added additional spices, ½ teaspoon at a time, until it reached my preferred taste: pumpkin spice, curry, cinnamon, curry. I also added ¼ c. brown sugar to the mix to make it even more flavorful.
4. My food processor didn’t provide the necessary smoothness, but my blender did.

**

Vintage Find of the Week

This well-used colander I purchased in a thrift shop reminds me of one my mother-in-law used to make applesauce. Her kitchen smelled so good as she cooked the apples to make them soft enough to mash.

My sister remembers our mother using her colander to make tomato juice from cooked tomatoes. My colander typically sits on display on a shelf above my cupboards in my kitchen.

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