Curried Butternut Squash Soup

At the farmer's market this week, there were many stalls with butternut squash. I decided to use them in a new (to me) soup recipe. Maybe a hot soup seems like a strange thing to eat in the hot summer in Florida. But what makes this soup appropriate for the weather is that it has coconut milk and lime and is spicy. It went very nicely with a Garden and Brazil Nut Salad with a Lime Juice and Olive Oil Dressing.

Curried Butternut Squash Soup, adapted from Cafe Flora Cookbook

2 to 3 pounds butternut squash, peeled, seeded and diced
1 tablespoon oil
1 large yellow onion, diced
salt
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons minced, peeled fresh ginger
2 tablespoons curry powder
1 teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted
1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds, toasted
1 bay leaf
1 or 2 cans coconut milk (I used one, it was plenty)
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
optional: pinch of cayenne pepper or hot sauce
optional garnish: freshly chopped cilantro or parsley

1. Heat oil in a soup pot and saute the onion for 5 to 8 minutes. Add salt and saute a few more minutes, until soft. Add garlic and ginger and cook 2 more minutes. Add the spices and stir, coating the spices with the oil and heating them to release their flavors. Add the water, squash, and bay leaf and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, covered until the squash is tender, about 20 minutes.

2. Reserve some of the liquid and set aside. Puree the rest of the soup in batches in a blender, filling the blender jar about halfway full each batch. Return the pureed soup into the soup pot. Add a can of coconut milk and stir. If the soup is too thick, either add more coconut milk or add some of the reserved liquid. Bring the soup just to the point where it boils. Take it off the heat and stir in the lime juice. Salt and pepper and hot sauce to taste. Garnish with finely chopped cilantro or parsley, if desired.