Sun and Squash

The meaning of the word fest stays true to my friends who never seem to lose the energy to celebrate or come together for anything whenever, wherever. That Saturday was no different; in fact even more so because there WAS indeed something to celebrate. It appeared that even a mabangisnalobo can actually remember that he was turning a quarter-century old. I wanted to give him a “savagely fierce balloon”, but I don't know what it looks like so I ended up not getting him one.

I remember that I had my 'biggest' birthday celebration when I turned his age. I invited most of my friends and had a blast cooking for everybody. It’s nice to look back and realise that I've been cooking for years now, although not as often as I want to. And as years passed, all I was certain of is that being amateur and clumsy got nothing to do with age.  

Which brings me back to the cookfest. A day before the second episode, I still haven’t decided on what dish to prepare. You see, the idea of our cookfests consists of picking a dish that we think will excite or evoke a reaction from each of us - be it violence or polite silence. It’s giving in to the challenge of offering something new on the table and a piece that completes a oneofakind meal. If you picked a main course, it doesn’t mean that you are the main man (or woman) because you know that the others will also think of a kick-ass dessert, a side dish that can become the center of attention, an appetizer that can transcend its order in the meal, or drinks that will make you fall.hard.on.the.floor. In addition to that, everyone brings in a generous dash of sensible conversation too. Yes, we try to cook within these standards. The operative word there is try.

The idea of making a squash soup came to me when I woke up that Saturday morning. I thought of the sun and not wanting to get up from bed, I shunned away from its brightness. I did, but that only got me into thinking of a gold-yellow soup that even a half-asleep person can make. That yummy, creamy soup that is seldom available in restaurants where I frequent here in Quezon City. I love soups. Like an igniter to a stove, the soup is to a satisfying meal. This is why I’m often disappointed that soups are often taken for granted. Have you ever tried the free “lasang nilagang medyas” in carenderias?  Or the soups in some “restaurants” that come from instant powder sachets? Do you know the feeling of having to take it because you just don't want your food to be dry?

So, squash. Vitamin A (and other letters). I grew up knowing that if you eat it, it will make your eyes healthier. Now I know that making it into a soup is healthy for your pocket too, the window to your poverty. Making a squash soup is inexpensive, almost fool-proof and can make your eyes twinkle just with the sight of its golden yellow color. It was also perfect for the other dishes my friends chose to cook.

I picked the recipe from somewhere in the internet which I could not find now. Our idea to put up this blog came after the second cookfest episode so the source was not much of a big deal then. If you chance upon a page that has similar ingredients with the following, please do inform me. 

400g squash

1 piece medium-sized potato

1 piece medium-sized carrot

2 liters vegetable stock

2 whole onions

3 cloves garlic

Black pepper, ground

Croutons (for garnish)

Parsley (for garnish)

chatting up charlie (who's
obviously not listening) while
prepping the veggies

To make it, dice the squash, potato and carrot. Mince your onions and garlic. Boil the vegetables in 2 liters of stock together with the onions, garlic and black peper until soft enough to mash together.

Take out the pot from the stove and mash the vegetables (you should be in a comfortable position while mashing the vegetables, since you woudn’t want your pot to slip and turn over). Yes, a good masher will do it but if you don’t have one, you can always use a fork, a big spoon or your steel fist.

Let it simmer again until much of the water has receded and the soup has become thicker (the consistency of the soup is important!). Put in a bowl and put croutons and parsley on top to garnish. The sight of the light-colored croutons and green parsley over the golden yellow soup was so pretty that all I could do was stare at it for some minutes.

The squash soup, having potato and carrot in it is heavy in the stomach, so careful about not getting too full if you still want to try the goodness of the other dishes. It is also perfect to try this for dinner if you don't want to eat a full meal. You can just put in some bits of fish in it for protein, or fried tofu instead of croutons as garnish. 

But wait, there’s more! I want to tell you how I prepared the stock. For the stock used in this soup, I was trying to look for a natural vegetable stock without preservatives and MSG at Robinson’s supermarket but didn’t find any. So I took one of those instant vegetable stock cubes. It’s not healthy and I blame it on my short-cutting tendency. The label does not say that it has MSG, but now I’m sure it’s hidden in the “flavourings” ingredient. You can check this site for more information about MSG and what products to avoid. I could have actually just made the soup without it, added more onions, leeks and salt instead, and made the water used for boiling the vegetables stand as the stock itself. You can also make your own stocks and store these in the freezer which, MaggieMay says, can last up to two months. For pork stock, you can buy pork bones (buto-buto), boil in liters of water and then separate the stock and store in the freezer. You can do the same for chicken, fish and beef. So anyway, that’s a healthy slap for me.

That fateful day started from five in the afternoon to nine the following morning. A successful second cookfest episode, a delightful meal, a case of beers, and never-ending conversations. That was one serious party for mabangisnalobo.