Special Training Recipe from Renowned Chef Stefan Czapalay

RunnerDude's Blog is honored with a special guest—Chef Stefan Czapalay. Chef Stefan, is one of Canada’s premiere culinary activists and is well known for his strong convictions about supporting local producers and providing his guests with dishes made with fresh ingredients.

His nationally acclaimed restaurant, Seasons in Thyme, on Prince Edward Island, was awarded three stars from “Where to Eat in Canada”, Four Diamonds from CAA/AAA and widely recognized as one of Canada's most innovative restaurants. He is a member of the Research Chefs Association, the Canadian Culinary Federation, La Chaîne de Rôtisseurs, the Opimian Society and a charter member of Cuisine Canada.

Not only is Chef Stefan an awesome chef he's also a runner. On July 28th 2010, Stefan will turn 45 years old and will attempt to run the Canadian Death Race (a 126 km race) in 18 hours.

I asked Stefan is he would share one of the recipes he's created as a training food for his running. Read on to learn how to make Chef Stefan's Butternut Squash Soup.

Eating nutritiously doesn’t have to be difficult. I do a bit of work each Saturday and then I'm set until Tuesday. This recipe is so easy and the squash can be substituted with either carrots, parsnips or sweet potatoes….or a combination of all. When I do my long Sunday runs, I get back home and in 60 seconds I have a cup of this steaming hot soup which I sip on while stretching. I can feel my body soaking in the vitamins, and it warms my core. In summer I increase the OJ and thin the soup a bit more and drink it cold. I also take it cold on LOOOONNNNGGG runs as my stomach can handle it.

Butternut Squash SoupPrep time 5 minutes

Cook time 30 minutes

Approx 150 calories per serving12 servings

Ingredients
1 Butternut Squash Cut in large chunks
1 small onion cut in small dice
1 stalk of celery diced ( not a bunch)
½ tsp curry powder
¼ tsp ginger powder
750 ml chicken Stock
250 ml orange juice
2 tbsp olive Oil
1 Bay Leaf
Salt and pepper to taste
250 ml water if needed

MethodHeat olive oil in a heavy bottom sauce pot. Add celery and onions with spices and gently sauté without adding color until aromatic. Approx 2 minutes. Add Squash and liquids and turn heat to med-low. Gently simmer for 30 minutes ( until squash is tender) Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Puree with an immersion blender…..or mash the heck out of it with a whisk!

Chef's notes
I used to make this with cream and butter, but this is equally delicious and has very little fat. Yes you need salt! 70% of our sodium comes from prepared foods. Using a bit of sea salt in this dish brings out the flavours and has no adverse health affects!

Be careful peeling Butternut squash as its very hard. Cut it in half where the skinny part starts to balloon out so its more manageable. Use a serrated bread knife for hard items like squash or melons and cut in a sawing motion. While you have the celery out, cut the rest of the bunch in sticks and put in a Tupperware for healthy nibbling.

Refrigerate soup and when needed, heat in a coffee cup in the microwave.

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All squash are not the same size so you may need to add a bit more liquid. Water or more of the low sodium chicken stock work well. I use Campbell’s chicken stock in this recipe.