Roasted Pear & Butternut Squash Soup with Crumbled Stilton

Leading up to our conference we had a test meal at the Shaw Conference Centre. My favourite thing on the menu that day was pear soup served with a blue cheese wonton. The soup was wonderfully sweet and was set off perfectly by the blue cheese in the wonton. Since then I've been searching for a recipe that would produce something similar. I found this recipe in Eating Well magazine and I like it better than the original soup I tried. The addition of the butternut squash and the blue cheese crumbles really pumped up the flavour.

Roasted Pear & Butternut Squash Soup with Crumbled Stilton

Serves 6

Ingredients

2 ripe pears, peeled, quartered and cored
2 pounds butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 2" pieces
2 medium tomatoes, cored and quartered
1 large leek, pale green and white parts only, halved lengthwise, sliced and washed thoroughly
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
3 cups chicken broth
2/3 cup crumbled Stilton, or other blue veined cheese
1 tablespoon thinly sliced green onions or chives

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.

2. Combine pears, squash, tomatoes, leek, garlic, oil, 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper in a large bowl; toss to coast. Spread evenly on a large rimmed baking sheet. Roast, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, 40 to 55 minutes. Let cool slightly.

3. Place vegetable mixture and stock in a pot large enough to accommodate them. Puree with an immersion blender until smooth. (You can also puree the mixture in a blender in two batches.) Stir in remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt.

4. Cook the soup over medium-low heat, stirring, until hot, about 10 minutes. Divide among 6 bowls and garnish with cheese and green onions or chives.

Leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days or can be frozen for up to 1 month.