From summer to fall — quickly! The seasonal tide has turned in San Francisco, and there is nothing I like more than a pot of soup on a rainy Sunday evening in autumn. When I develop recipes, I tend to look for base flavors that can accomodate experimentation. For soups, butternut squash is the perfect blank canvas to absorb a variety of different flavors. For this soup in particular, I combine the sweet/savory of the squash with the spice of the chipotle and richness of the adobo sauce. A bowl of this soup is at once sweet, hearty, savory and spicy.

Chipotle Butternut Squash Soup

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 8 cups butternut squash, peeled and chopped
• 6 cups veggie broth
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 chipotle pepper (canned in adobo sauce), seeds removed
• 2 tablespoons adobo sauce
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• Crema or crème fraiche, optional garnish

Instructions:

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Prepare squash, toss with olive oil and bake until soft, about 30 minutes.
3. Transfer squash to a sauce pan and add broth, salt, chipotle pepper, adobo sauce and brown sugar.
4. Purée soup until smooth.
5. Simmer over medium-high heat until the soup has reduced by a quarter.
6. Garnish with a dollop of crema or crème fraiche.
7. Enjoy!