Something that I’ve grown to love about this city are the characters who inhabit our neighborhoods and inadvertently become part of the local flavor for those who know that area intimately. 

For as long as I can remember, a stroll through Union Square on a Saturday guaranteed an encounter with a dapper gentleman with a Cockney accent squatting over a mountain of carrot, cucumber, and potato shavings, ranting about his superior Swiss stainless steel peelers. His name was Joe Ades and he was one of those New York City legends that you swear must only exist in movies.

Our neighborhood suffered a great loss earlier this month, when Mr. Ades passed away. I was saddened to read the news and for the past few weeks, I’ve definitely noticed his absence. No matter how many times I’d see him, I could never resist stopping to listen to the best sales pitch in the history of selling.

I thought of him the other night, when I brought out the Swiss peeler (that he sold me) to prepare this root vegetable gratin, which required peeling a butternut squash, two sweet potatoes, and a rutabaga. I’m sure I’ll remember him every time I use it going forward.

I picked this dish because I’ve been feeling a little off-kilter since returning from vacation and I needed some inspiration to get back into a routine of variety and nourishment (as opposed to, say, cereal for dinner twice this week? Don’t tell my mother). This recipe was the perfect shot in the arm. It looked so pretty, beckoning from the cover of this month’s Food and Wine and contrary to its name (I hear gratin, I think cheese city), it’s a very healthy recipe.

The toughest part of preparing this recipe was fighting with the mandoline. Perhaps it’s because mine is less than top of the line (I have the oxox model), but getting those thin slices was tricky with the darn’d thing sliding all over the counter and changing the slicing width on me.

Once I got past that part, it was smooth sailing. Just be warned, this is not a quick dish. Even thinly sliced root vegetables take a long time to cook. It was delicious and well worth it. I served it with some nice crusty 7-grain bread from Balthazar and a green salad. All of a sudden, I’m right back in!

Root Vegetable Gratin
Adapted from the recipe by Melissa Rubel, featured in Food and Wine, February 2009  

2 large sweet potatoes, peeled

1 butternut squash neck (2 1/4 pounds) from a large butternut squash, peeled

1 medium rutabaga (2 pounds), peeled and halved lengthwise

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth

1/4 cup heavy cream

3/4 cup panko (Japanese bread crumbs)

1 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Butter for greasing the dish

Preheat the oven to 375°. Using a mandoline, slice the potatoes and squash lengthwise 1/8 inch thick. Slice the rutabaga crosswise 1/8 inch thick.

Grease an 8-by-12-inch glass baking dish with butter (cooking spray was recommended, I did not have any). Arrange half of the potatoes in the dish, overlapping them slightly; season with salt and pepper. Top with half of the rutabaga and the squash, seasoning each layer. Repeat the layering. Pour the broth over and around the vegetables.

Cover tightly with foil and bake for 1 hour, until the vegetables are almost tender when pierced. Remove the foil and pour the cream over the gratin. Bake for about 30 minutes longer, until the liquid has thickened.

Preheat the broiler. Mix the panko with the oil and season with salt and pepper; sprinkle over the gratin. Broil 3 inches from the heat for 2 minutes, until golden, rotating for even browning. Let the gratin stand for 10 minutes, then serve.

I’ve arrived at the point in the winter season when I turn into a serious hater. I hate my coats, my scarves, and my gloves. I hate shoving my feet into boots and freeing my face off each morning as I make the trek to the subway. I hate the sad selection of root vegetables and apples at the greenmarket. And with the teeth-rattling wind chills that raged all week, the only place that I wanted to be (besides curled up in bed) was in the kitchen making soup, pretending that I’d never have to go outside again.

Butternut squash soup is one of my winter favorites for a few key reasons. First off, it has only a few ingredients that are readily available and quite affordable.

And then there’s the fact that it is almost impossible to mess it up. Even my cat could make this soup.

And lastly, despite it’s decadent, creamy texture and big flavor, it’s ridiculously good for you (low in fat, high in nutrients).

This particular recipe features a puree of roasted red pepper drizzled on the top. I found the flavor off-putting and say don’t bother.

I used a hand blender to puree the soup right in the pot. If you do not have this very awesome gadget, never fear – a regular blender or food processor will yield the same effect. For me, it was worth the 25 bucks to never have to clean my blender after making soup.

I highly recommend using fresh thyme for this soup, and don’t forget to add the zest. The recipe calls for orange, but I used lemon instead.

As I mentioned earlier, If you like the taste of biting garlic and slightly bitter pepper overpowering the lovely creamy squash flavors, then this puree is for you. Otherwise, steer clear.

I served this soup with some rosemary crackers that I will show you in my next post. The soup was entirely delicious and achieved the desired warming effect, briefly lifting my spirits, if only until I had to return out into the elements once more.

Butternut Squash Soup with Roasted Red Pepper Purée
Adapted from Gourmet, December 2003 

For the soup:

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 1/4 cups chopped onions

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 2 1/2-pound butternut squash, peeled, seeded, cut into 1-inch pieces

5 1/2 cups (or more) vegetable broth

3 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme

1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel

Thanksgiving is coming and in an effort to not feel too much like huge pigs, each year we try to eat pretty light during the days leading up to the big event. Some years we are more successful at it than others, but when this spicy and flavorful butternut squash soup is on the pre-game menu, we have a shot at staying on the wagon until Thursday evening.

There is no set recipe for this soup and I can only offer guidelines based on how I like to make it. You can’t really go wrong if you start with a very fresh, local butternut squash of medium size (will feed 4 as part of a meal, 2 as the meal itself). Peel, seed, and chop the squash into pieces that are roughly 1 1/2 inches.

The sort-of -secret ingredient in this soup is apples – for this recipe I use two of the Macintosh variety, peeled, cored, and chopped into eighths.

Bring a pot of water to boil and add the squash. Let it simmer for about 15 minutes, or until you notice that it has gotten soft enough to mash with a fork. At this point, add the apples and simmer for an additional three minutes. Remove from the heat and strain.

Puree the squash and apples in a food processor or blender until they are completely creamy and smooth with absolutely no lumps.

Once the mixture is smooth, dump the contents of the food processor into a large saucepan and add a cup of vegetable stock – homemade or store bought will both work here.

Once the stock is stirred in, begin to add curry to the soup, a little bit at a time. I used a Tikka Masala blend that I got from an Indian grocery, but red Thai curry would also work fine here. Slowly add spice and then taste, stopping when it has reached your desired level of spice.

Once the soup is spicy to your liking, add salt and fresh ground pepper to taste. Also, you may choose to add a tablespoon of butter, although I thought it was just fine without it.

Stir and simmer for a few more minutes, then taste again and add more seasoning if needed. Spoon the soup into bowls and add a pinch of nutmeg to the top for presentation and aroma. This soup is perfectly complimented by a multi-grain roll or piece of sourdough toast.

Curried Butternut Squash Soup

1 medium to large sized butternut squash

2 Macintosh apples – the food, not the computer

1 cup vegetable stock

approx 2 tablespoons Thai red curry or other curry (red colors are recommended for presentation)

salt and fresh ground black pepper

1 tablespoon butter (optional)

Pinches of nutmeg (optional)