The Best of Both Worlds

I read a recipe a while back for Summer Squash Pasta Soup (it's another from Seasoned to Taste by the JL Chattanooga.) I thought it sounded delicious, but I don't like making soup during the hot months, and good summer squash is sometimes hard to come by in the colder months.


I have a solution. In our past couple CSA boxes from Delvin Farms, we've been getting more pattypan squash than we could stuff and eat. Technically the recipe calls for yellow crookneck squash, but I decided this would be an acceptable substitute and put some tasty looking squash to good use. Also, Mom and Dad haven't been able to eat all their pattypan, so I decided to make a double batch and invite them over for supper.


Mike decreed the result as his new favorite soup, and the rest of us thought pretty highly of it as well. I didn't have fresh thyme on hand, but thought dried worked fine. If you don't have or prefer not to cook with wine, I'm sure you could use additional broth or stock. I have to say, though, that the wine really added another level of flavor that I think would be missed. (To my vegetarian friends. You can use additional vegetable stock instead of the chicken broth, but you'll probably want to add a little extra salt.)


One more thing...the longer it sits, the more liquid the pasta soaks up. This isn't a problem, but if you like liquidy soup, you can always add a little more wine, broth, or stock before you reheat it. We also sprinkled ours with a bit of fresh Parmesan.


And I apologize...we gobbled this up so quickly that I forgot to take a picture. You'll just have to trust me when I say you'll love it!

Summer Squash Pasta Soup

3 tablespoons butter

1 small onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, minced

3 small yellow squash, cut into halves lengthwise and thinly sliced

Sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

¼ cup white wine

1 cup vegetable stock

2 cups chicken broth

⅔ cup ditalini pasta, or other short pasta

Juice of ½ large lemon

½ teaspoon chopped fresh thyme

¼ teaspoon sea salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and sauté for 3 minutes or until tender. Add the garlic and sauté just until fragrant. Add the squash and sauté for 3 minutes. Season with sea salt and pepper to taste. Add the wine. Cook until the wine is almost evaporated, stirring to scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the stock and broth. Bring to a boil and add the pasta. Cook for 10 minutes or until the pasta is al dente. Stir in the lemon juice, thyme, ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Ladle into soup bowls.

Serves 4