The first recipe I’m trying from my new William Sonoma “Soup of the Day” cookbook is the Orzo, Delicata Squash & Chicken Soup with Sage. The cookbook wants me to cook the chicken breasts, why on earth would I do that when a fabulous roasted chicken is available at Costco? We enjoy the chicken the first day, but with only Hubby and myself, we always have leftovers. Rather than roast – I shredded the remaining 1 1/2 breasts – easy peasy. Hubby is on his own with the leftover leg and thigh as I am not a fan of dark meat.
The recipe also calls for Delicata Squash, I didn’t have time before sending hubby to the grocery store to look it up – so I asked him to buy butternut squash – it worked.
I did roast the squash and cook the orzo according to the directions – I’m not completely reckless. The soup was light and delish, definitely a recipe I’ll repeat.
- 1 butternut (or delicata) squash
- 3Tbsp olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 1-2 breasts from roasted chicken, shredded
- 1 cup orzo
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 5 sage leaves, torn
- 4 cups chicken broth
- handful of baby spinach leaves, torn
- Preheat oven to 400°
- Peel and cube the squash, toss with 2Tbsp olive oil and spread on parchment lined baking sheet.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Bake for about 30 minutes, until it is tender and caramelized.
- Cook orzo in boiling, salted water (according to package directions) for 7 minutes.
- Drain and set aside.
- In a large saucepan, over medium high heat, add 3 Tbsp. olive oil and saute the onion, garlic, and sage until soft, about 5 minutes.
- Ad the broth and bring to a boil.
- Add the orzo, shredded chicken, and squash and reduce heat to simmer for 15 minutes.
- Add the spinach, season to taste with salt and pepper, and serve.