Butternut Squash Bisque

There is this Amish farm stand in mid-Michigan that I always like to visit and get food when I'm visiting my mum. I get my maple syrup and eggs from them and this time of year they always have a bountiful selection of pumpkins, gourds and all kinds of squash. This year, I bought nearly a dozen squash and my favourite is still butternut. Each autumn I make this butternut squash bisque and it's the most comforting soup for a gray fall day like today. For this recipe, I used four squash and roasted them cut sides up draped with pancetta. The squash soaks in all the flavor from the pancetta and then I reserve the pancetta to cut up and sprinkle on top to serve. It's such a perfect combination of savoury and sweet. I have just one squash left from my trip to the Amish farm stand and I plan to use it for Thanksgiving. Audrey tried squash for the first time recently and loves it too!

Museum Lunch

I don’t often leave the office to have lunch, but I took a walk with a colleague one day and was glad that I did as we had some good conversation and a very tasty lunch at the Grand Rapids Art Museum (GRAM) café. I had the portobello mushroom ravioli with a butternut squash sauce and a bordeaux reduction. Not only was it a beautiful presentation, but it was a fantastic meal. And, it was a very fitting meal for the first day of Autumn.