Butternut squash soup

2 TB olive oil
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1 carrot peeled and cut ( I used 1 cup worth of baby carrots cut up)
3 cloves of garlic minced
6 cups low sodium chicken broth
2 large butternut squashes
1/4 cup chopped fresh sage ( I didn't have fresh)
kosher salt and pepper to taste

I cut the squash in 1/2 and removed the seeds. I covered a baking sheet with tinfoil and baked the squash (skin side up) for an hour at 350 degrees. 10 minutes before the squash is done, begin the other half of the soup. In a large pot, pour in olive oil and add onion & carrot. Cook for about 5-10 minutes or until onion is soft. Add garlic and cook for another 3 minutes. Add broth and sage. Remove squash from the oven and scoop our the insides. Set aside in a bowl. In batches, put broth mixture and squash into the blender. (or use an immersion blender) Continue until all is blended. Put back into pot and let simmer until you are ready to serve.

Fontina Crostini
Whole wheat baguette (I used regular)
olive oil
2 TB sage
1 cup grated fontina (I used 3 cheese parmiana)

Cut baguette at a diagonal into 1/2 inch think slices
Drizzle olive oil over bread and sprinkle with sage. Top with cheese and season with salt. Bake at 400 degrees for about 6-8 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Ladel soup into bowls and garnish with crostini.

Adapted from Giada De Laurentiis in Shape mag Dec 09