Summer Squash Soup, Roasted Tomato and Cipollini

I think that dinner tonight may have been the highlight of my Goodies and Grub experience thus far. I'm so happy to have been blogging for a couple months because it's been opening so many doors (or cupboards) in the kitchen! 

Both of these recipes come from The Smitten Kitchen; they were such a perfect compliment to one another. I'm calling the combination of bold tomatoes and onions with subtle, comforting summer squash soup "Summer Lovin'." What an essential summer garden supper!

I'll stop with the veggie love story and get on to the how-to's...

Veggie mania

Squash Soup Ingredients:

• 1/2 stick (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 lb yellow summer squash, halved and thinly sliced
• 2 carrots, thinly sliced
• 1 yellow-fleshed potato (1/2 pound), peeled, halved, and thinly sliced
• 4 cups chicken stock or reduced-sodium chicken broth

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a 6- to 8-quart wide heavy pot over moderate heat, then cook onion with salt, stirring, until softened, about 8 minutes. 

2. Add squash, carrots, potato, and stock and bring to a boil. 

3. Reduce heat, then simmer, partially covered, until vegetables are very tender, about 20 minutes. 

4. Remove from heat and cool soup, uncovered, 10 minutes.

5. Working in batches, puree; soup in a blender until smooth (use caution when blending hot liquids) and transfer to a bowl. 

6. Return purée to cleaned pot and thin with water if desired; simmer 3 minutes. Season with salt.  

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Roasted Tomato and Cipollini Ingredients:

• 1 pound cipollini onions
• 1 pound small Roma or large cherry tomatoes1/4 cup olive oil
• Coarse salt
• 4 slices of country or ciabatta bread, one-inch thick
• Garlic clove (optional)
• Few fresh basil leaves, slivered 
• 1/2 c ricotta cheese/spinach mixture (optional)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Directions: 
  1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Boil a small pot of water and blanche the cipollini for 10 seconds, then plunge them into cold water. Use a paring knife to make a small slit in each, and slide them out of their skins and outer layer. 
  
  
  
  2. Spread peeled onions and tomatoes in a roasting pan. Drizzle with olive oil and a few good pinches of coarse salt. Toss everything together until well-coated and roast in preheated oven for about 45 minutes, reaching in every 15 minutes with a spatula to roll the tomatoes and onions around to ensure all sides get blistered. 
  
  
  
  

  

  Fuhgetaboutit!

  3. Just before you take the tomatoes and onions out, place your bread slices on the oven rack and let them toast lightly. You can rub the toasts with a halved garlic clove while still hot.   
  
  
  
  
  4. Use tongs to arrange toasts in one layer on a serving platter.
  
  
  
  
   
  5. I had some leftover spinach/ricotta mixture from stuffed chicken earlier in the week, so I spread some of that onto the toast. Then top the toast with tomato and onions, don't hesitate to pour some of the hard work of the tomato and onion onto the toast. 
  
  
  6. Sprinkle the dish with the basil and eat at once.