Hey, Joob!

Dear Diary,

Today was a good day. I ate soup and tied my shoes all by myself.

KEEDING. Much better than Day 1, which was recovering from my gnarly hangover. I got in a great lift AND went with Seth to get his tattoo, which was my Christmas present to him. (I’ve flown south for the winter, btw. Been here about a week.) He got it done by the same artist that did my arm, which of course meant that I talked to him about drafting my next tattoo. (SECRETTSSSS.) This is going to be good, though.

The full thing says “leave no regrets” around his arm.

Eats -
Wake up –  1c coffee (black)

9ishAM – 3 soft boiled eggs

12:30PM – A banana and a salad (lettuce, tomato, red onion, red pepper, celery, carrots, and leftover beef from last night in a dressing made up of mixed red wine vinegar, spicy brown mustard, and EVOO)

Photobombing!!!! Look at that fork.

3:45PM – wanted a snack so I had a kiwi and a big spoonful of sunflower seed butter

6:30ishPM – THE BEST SOUP EVER! I had two bowls, which was more than I needed and now I’m stuffed but I don’t care.

Roasted Red Pepper Tomato Basil Butternut Squash Soup WTF?!#
(Very loosely based off THIS RECIPE)

Ingredients:

• 1 small/medium butternut squash
• 4 red tomatos
• 6 cloves garlic
• 2 small yellow onions
• 1 red pepper
• 3 sprigs (?) basil
• 1/2 c coconut milk
• 1/2 c water
• EVOO
• Salt & Pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 425F
2. Cut your squash in half, gut the seeds, and put in the oven to roast while you prep the other ingredients. (It will take about an hour total to roast, so throw it in there first)
3. Cut your tomatos into quarters and remove the guts. Place on a baking sheet with your onion, red pepper, and peeled garlic cloves.
4. Brush everything with EVOO, sprinkle with salt & pepper, and roast for 20-30 minutes.
   
5. Scoop out your roasted things into a food processor, we used a Vitamix blender, along with your basil, coconut milk, & water. (Or go straight into a pot if you’re using an immersion blender) Blend until it’s a puree and put into a pot to simmer until you’re happy with the hottness (<<< specific, I know).
   

OPTIONAL: We seasoned some chicken thighs with Penzey’s Salt Free Italian Seasoning and grilled them while everything was roasting, then we added them when the soup was heating on the stove.

ALSO OPTIONAL: Eat the skin of the butternut squash. I love it. Don’t question me.

This recipe was a little bit more work (and cleanup) than my usual go-to recipes, but I think if we were at my apartment with my immersion blender, it would have felt less messy/daunting.