squash Archives - Domestic Fits

I’m so excited to share this with you. It is my favorite soup right now, and one of my favorite recipes so far this year.

It’s interesting to see which posts get tons and tons of traffic and which ones get ignored, because really, you never know. My highest trafficked post isn’t even in my top twenty favorites.

My most popular post, Inside Out Caramel Apples, makes me cringe a bit. Although it has been pinned about 200,000 times and shared on Facebook and Twitter thousands more, I don’t really love it. It was posted about a year ago, and there seems to be mixed results with success. As a blogger, that’s hard. I want everyone to have a home run every time they make the recipe, and that one seems to be hit or miss. I hate that. And I hate that I have no idea why it fails for some people, and works for others.

And sometimes, the recipes that I love and can’t wait to share, get ignored. You just never know what is going to be a runaway pinterest hit, and what is going to get nothing more than a passing glance.

But this soup, I LOVE this soup, and I hope you do too.

Seriously, I’m going to make it again this week.

Creamy Butternut Soup With Pomegranate and Goat Cheese

Ingredients

1 head garlic
1 tbs olive oil
1 large (or two small) butternut squash
2 shallot, minced
3 tbs olive oil
2 cup chicken broth
2 cup water
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
pinch cayenne
1/2 cup cream
1 cup pomegranate seeds
3 oz crumbled goat cheese

Instructions

Preheat oven to 425.
Cut the tip of the head of garlic, exposing the tops of the cloves. Place on a small sheet of aluminum foil, drizzle with 1 tbs olive oil. Fold foil around garlic to form a tight package.
Cut the butternut squash in half. Scoop out the seeds. Place on a baking sheet. Place garlic package on the baking sheet as well.
Roast at 425 for 25 minutes, remove the garlic and allow to cool. Continue to roast the butternut squash for an additional 20 to 30 minutes (45 to 55 minutes total) or until flesh is soft and easy to scoop out.
Scoop out flesh (should be about 5 cups) and puree in a food processor until smooth.
In a large pot or dutch oven, add the shallots and olive oil over medium heat. Caramelize the shallots over medium heat, stirring occasional, for about 10 minutes, or until a dark golden brown. Don’t cook over high heat or the shallots will burn.
Add the chicken broth, water, butternut puree, salt, pepper and cayenne. Squeeze the soft garlic head until the cloves push out (should be soft and mushy) add cloves to the soup. Bring soup to a boil, then reduce heat and to maintain a simmer until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes.
Remove from heat, add cream and stir.
Scoop into bowls, garnish with pomegranate and goat cheese.

Makes 6 servings.

This has been a long week for me. I’ve been in the process of hiring a new person at work. Through out the interview process, from reading resumes to second interviews, I’ve been able to learn quite a bit about the behind-the-scenes-process. It is incredible what people think is completely acceptable behavior in an interview, here are some examples:

In response to the question, "Where do you see yourself in 5 years?" Here are some of the responses I got:

"Oh…I’m going to win the lottery. I am. But don’t worry, I’ll give you a big donation, It’s a tax write off."

"Ummm…A lawyer? I think maybe I’ll be a lawyer." (I don’t work for law firm and we don’t employ lawyers)

"I don’t know. I mean, I only want this job for like…18 months? But don’t worry, I’ll help you find someone really good to replace me!"

I’ve never been a "tell me what I want to hear" kind of person, but this really comes down to professionalism and good judgement. If you aren’t able to answer that question correctly, It makes me worry about how you will answer more difficult questions that clients may ask you.

The correct response, in one form or another: "I am looking to find a company that I can work for long-term. I want to be at my next job, hopefully, for the rest of my career so I’m looking for a place that has opportunities for advancement and will allow me to grow as a professional."

Proper attire:

Don’t wear a shirt that intentionally shows your bra. I don’t care if it is La Perla.

6-inch platform Lucite heels are not a good choice for interview footwear.

For the LOVE OF GOD do not, under any circumstances, wear a BLUETOOTH in an interview. Unless you hold the keys to missile defense, you are not that important. I promise.

Written communication, the first impression:

Before you even get an interview, your resume, cover letter and initial email will give the first impression. Here are some tips to make sure you aren’t weeded out right of the bat:

Make sure everything is spelled correctly.

Write a cover letter, this alone will put you above half of the other applicants and give you a voice.

Change the "Objective" field to fit the company you are applying for. It is a huge red flag if it does not match who we are. Either you are sloppy and have no attention to detail, or you really don’t want to work for us.

If you have a email address, such as ChicanaSkank69@[domain].com don’t put it on your resume, take the ten minutes to set up a free, more professional looking email address using your name, for instance: [email protected]. That was an actual email address I got from one of the applicants (domain has been changed to protect the obviously not so innocent).

If I call you for an interview, don’t wait 3 days to respond. I’m not some chick you banged in the bathroom of a TGIFridays, the three day rule does not apply.

If you say that you are "Detail Oriented" at least spell both words correctly.

Ugh. I have lost a bit of my faith in man kind after this week. But I have not lost my faith in a good soup with a pastry crust. And bacon makes everything better.

This recipe was inspired by a Butternut Squash Recipe from Giada De Laurentiis.

Butternut Squash and Bacon Pot Pie

Pot Pie crust:

Pie dough (enough from one pie crust)

1 sheet puff pastry

Pot Pie Filling:

6 strips of bacon, cut in half

1 medium onion, chopped

1 medium carrot, peeled and chopped into 1/2-inch pieces

3 cloves garlic, minced

3 1/2 pounds butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 3/4-inch pieces (about 7 to 8 cups)

6 cups low-sodium chicken broth

1/4 cup chopped fresh sage leaves

½ tsp smoked paprika

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400.

In a dutch oven, over medium heat cook the bacon until most of the fat has been rendered. Remove from heat, allowing to drain and cool on a stack of 2-3 paper towels.

Drain off most of the bacon fat, leaving only about 3 tbs in the pot.

Turn the heat up to medium-high and add the onions and carrots to the pot, cooking in the bacon grease until opaque. Add the garlic and cook just until you are able to smell them, about 30 seconds. Add the chicken broth and squash, allowing to simmer until the squash is very tender, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat. Using an immersion blender, blend until smooth. Add the smoked paprika, and sage, stir to combined. Add the salt and pepper, seasoning to taste.

Chop the bacon into small pieces, add to the pot and stir.

Place four ceramic, oven safe bowls on a baking sheet. Divide the filling equally between the four bowls.

Place desire pot pie crust on a well floured surface, add flour to the top of the disk as well. Roll out into an even thickness.

Cut out 4 circles that will cover the dishes with at least a one-inch overhang on each side.

To prevent sticking, spray the rim of the baking dish with cooking spray. Top each dish with the dough circle, pressing into shape. Cut a few slits in the top to vent heat. Brush with melted butter.

squash

Creamy Butternut Soup With Pomegranate and Goat Cheese

Butternut Squash and Bacon Pot Pie & Job Interview Tips