A pinch of curry and ginger bring out the flavor in a simple, smooth butternut squash soup. Serve this well-loved cool weather soup with a tangy spinach salad that is tossed with apples, cashews and crunchy pomegranate seeds.
Heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add cooking oil and then ginger, onions and curry powder to heated oil with a generous pinch of salt. Saute until onions are soft, ~2 minutes. Add squash cubes and saute until the outsides begin to brown, ~3 minutes. Add stock and sugar and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat to a simmer and cover with the lid. Simmer until squash is tender, ~15 minutes.
While soup simmers, make vinaigrette by combining vinegar, maple syrup, mustard and olive oil. Season with some salt and pepper. Toss spinach with vinaigrette, apple slices, pomegranate seeds and cashews.
After soup has simmered and squash is tender, puree with an immersion blender (like in this video) or transfer to a blender in batches. Puree until smooth. Season soup to taste with salt and pepper.
Ladle soup into bowls and top with sour cream. Serve with salad on the side and enjoy!