Fall is the most romantic season, hands down. There is something so special about throwing on that first sweater and watching the trees turn into flames of fire as the leaves turn red, orange and yellow. There are so many words that come to my mind when I think about the feeling of fall. Warmth, comfort, snuggles, sweaters, nature, and romance.

Every fall I have this deep desire to connect with nature and to be outdoors. It is such an earthy season full of pumpkins and visits to the farms for apple picking. Its almost like after a long summer of hot steamy days, the crisp in the air brings us back to life, and gives us a fresh start.

Along with fall, of course comes the beautiful holiday of thanksgiving. I love the idea of thanksgiving because it is so universal. Many great people will tell you that gratitude plays a huge part in happiness. We tend to forget to be grateful in our everyday life, as our overwhelming to-do-lists distract us. Thanksgiving gives us that opportunity to sit around the table with the people we love and indulge in a delicious feast with the intent of being grateful (read this article for table setting ideas).

Speaking of feasts, there is nothing like starting off the thanksgiving meal with a warm bowl of butternut squash soup. This is my favorite thanksgiving recipe because it uses vegetables that are in season and it is so creamy and delicious. The soup is so easy to make and will be the star of your thanksgiving dinner

butternut-soup-pic

Delicious Butternut Soup

Ingredients:

1 Large onion
4 large sweet potatoes
5 carrots
1 large Butternut squash
2-3 garlic cloves minced
1 tsp. of cinnamon
1tbs of olive oil

Directions:

1. Peel and cut into medium sized cubes the sweet potatoes, carrots, butternut squash and onion.
2. In a large pot, on medium heat, add olive oil and onions. Cook onions till golden.
3. Add all of the remaining vegetables, except for the garlic, and the cinnamon to the pot and let it cook until soft. Stir often so the vegetables don’t stick to the bottom of the pot.
4. Once all vegetables are soft, add water to the top of the vegetables. Turn heat up to high and let boil. After soup boils turn heat back down to medium and let simmer for 30 minutes.
5. Add the garlic and let simmer for another 10 minutes.
6. Cool the soup down and use a hand blender to blend all together and create a creamy texture.

This will feed all of your guests and will leave them asking for more. You can garnish with some chives or green onions.
You can freeze this soup and it will still taste great 2 months later!

Enjoy!