Halloween (Butternut Squash and Black Bean) Soup

Halloween is great. I love candy corn, kids in costumes, parades, carved pumpkins, hot apple cider and "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown." Halloween as a kid was almost as good as Christmas. It was magical. You got to dress up, eat sweets, and stay up late. I remember one year my brother Vince was a werewolf. He wore brown shoes, brown socks, brown corduroy pants, a brown and white checked button down shirt, brown wool sweater and a very scary werewolf mask. It had a head of curly brown hair, protruding snout and large blood fangs. He was the neat-est and fiercest werewolf and 2nd grader that ever was.

The only drawback to Halloween is the pressure to dress up. As a kid it was fine, but starting in high school it became a burden. I dreaded it in college and in my twenties. My ideas and execution were terrible. I have a long history of bad Halloween costumes. One particularly embarrassing year in college involved giant bunny ears and glitter. It was bad, and there are lots and lots of pictures. There was also the year that my husband and I dressed up as salt and pepper shakers. I thought getting a cab to the party was humiliating. The ride back was much worse. I don't frown on people who do get dressed up. In fact, I think it's great. I'm creative when it comes to food, but I totally bomb on artsy projects like Halloween costumes and dioramas. Hopefully, when it's time for me to help my son with school projects I will find some creative inspiration (or an assistant).

Now, the orange and black soup:

2 2-lb butternut squashes or 1 4-lb butternut squash
1 medium onion, small dice
1 tablespoon olive oil
32 oz low sodium chicken stock
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons of ground cumin
1/8 - 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
2 16 oz cans of black beans, rinsed

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Split squash in half, scoop out seeds, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast in the oven for 1 hour. Flesh should be soft when you pierce with fork. Let cool, then scoop out flesh and mash with fork

In large soup pot, heat up 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add onions and saute until soft. Add salt, pepper, cumin and cayenne pepper. Add stock, and bring to medium simmer. Stir in smashed butternut squash. Let cook on medium for about 20 minutes until squash fully incorporates. Stir often. Add in black beans, and let cook for just a few more minutes.

Serve with warm bread.