I am so looking forward to butternut squash soup tonight. 
I know that the weather has warmed up again, 
after that nasty rain, but I am still craving a warm cozy soup dinner.
When Mark worked at Chez Panisse, he taught me how to make pureed soups. 
I was so thrilled that they we so full of flavor and didn’t have cream in them. 
I never liked the creamy soups.
This pureed delicacy is especially true of butternut squash.
The creaminess comes from the flesh of the squash itself and it is as rich as if there was cream in it.
It is true that most vegetables lend themselves to pureed soups, 
but in some like fennel, a potato has to be added to get the right consistency. 
Lemon juice at the end is another important ingredient. 
The tiny bit of acid helps to bring out the flavors. 
It isn’t necessary to strain a butternut squash soup, 
but other pureed vegetable soups are because they might be stringy 
or have seeds or skins that may ruin the texture.
In the beginning I used a food processor to puree the soups and it was a mess. 
Then I discovered the immersion blender. This is truly my most favorite tool in my kitchen.
It is so efficient. I use a deep pot to cook the soup and then I puree it in the pot. 
If it is a soup that I have to strain, I pour the pureed soup though a mesh colander and 
then clean out the pot and put the soup back in to season and warm it up.

Butternut Squash Soup
2 TB olive oil
1 butternut Squash
1 onion sliced
1 pear
6 cups chicken stock
1 spring rosemary
Salt and pepper
1 Tb lemon juice

Peel the skin of the butternut squash with a potato peeler or carefully with a knife
Cut in half and clean out the seeds and discard the seeds
Cut inside flesh  into 2 inch pieces.
Peel the pear , seed and cut into 6 pieces

Saute the onion in olive oil
Add the butternut squash pieces and the pear pieces
Add the chicken stock and rosemary.
Cook until the squash is tender
Let cool a bit and remove the rosemary sprig
Puree with an immersion blender or in a food processor
Put back into the pot and season with salt and pepper, and lemon juice. Add water if it is too thick at this time.
Serve hot with a sprinkling of fresh chopped herbs or some grated parmesan