Chef Sue and Culinary Students Win the Souper Bowl!

by Cynthia Tintorri
February 03, 2010

It was a great day for soup on Saturday, January 30 -- daytime temperature never reached above a bone-chilling 20 degrees. It was also a great day for chef-instructor Susan Roth and a group of NCC culinary students and graduates. Their entry in Souper Bowl 2010, roasted butternut squash soup with apple sage ravioli and cardamom honey cream, won the People's Choice as well as Best Vegetarian categories.

Souper Bowl, held at the Banana Factory in Bethlehem, is an event in which area restaurants show off their best soups to raise money for the Bethlehem Area School District's B-Smart after-school arts program. Paying guests -- a sold-out crowd of 300 -- sampled the soups, and judges chose the best entries in categories such as ethnic, chowder, cream-based, meat-based, and others. Hampton Winds' (NCC's restaurant showcasing the work of its culinary students) table at Souper Bowl 2010 was manned entirely by students and graduates of the culinary program.

"The students were so excited to win one category -- and then to hear NCC for the overall win was just great," said Chef Sue.

The winning culinary crew included students Kyle Assise (who coordinated the volunteers), Corey Trainer, Matt Paxton, Dan Kluemper, Angela Grimm, and Sean Rainey, as well as recent grads Meghan Singer and Meghan Macenka.

Watch Chef Sue and students create the winning soup in a recent segment of "In the Kitchen" on WFMZ- Channel 69. Or read about the win in this Morning Call article by Arlene Martinez.

Want to try recreating the winning soup in your own kitchen? Here's the recipe:

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with apple sage ravioli and cardamom cream

• 2 large butternut squash- peeled and cut into large cubes
• 1 large yam, peeled and cut into large cubes
• 2 baking potatoes, peeled and cut into 8's
• 2 TB honey
• 1 tsp salt
•  ½ tsp pepper
• 2 TB maple syrup
• 2 TB olive oil

Combine all of the above and roast on a sprayed sheet  for 1 hour at 350 degrees, stiring once. 

• 2 carrots, peeled and diced
• 1 large onion diced
• 2 ribs of celery, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 TB olive oil
• 3 macintosh apples, peeled and diced
• 1 tsp fresh thyme
•  2 bay leaves
•  3 quarts chicken stock 

In a pot large enough to hold all of the previous ingredients, sweat the vegetables and garlic in the olive oil until tender, add the apples and herbs, and cook for 5 more minutes. Add the roasted vegetables and cover with the chicken stock by 2 inches (may need more or less depending on the size of the squash). Simmer on low heat for 1-1 ½ hours. Puree with a hand or stand blender until smooth.

 Ravioli Dough

• ½ cup semolina flour
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 3-4 eggs
• pinch salt
• 1 TB olive oil

Combine all ingredients. Knead to make a smooth dough. Cover and let rest for one hour.  

Ravioli Filling

• 2 TB olive oil
• 1 minced shallot
• 4 granny smith apples, peeled and small diced
• 2 TB. chopped fresh sage
• ¼ cup apple cider or juice
• 2 TB apple jack brandy (optional)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Saute the shallots and apples in the oil until tender. Deglaze with liquid. Add sage and seasonings and cook on low until almost dry. Cool. Roll out  pasta dough. Place 1 tsp. filling at 2-inch intervals on dough. Roll out another sheet of dough, and place over the filling. Cut into desired shapes. Cook in 1 quart chicken stock and 1pint apple cider until tender.

Cardamom Cream

•  1 cup sour cream
• ¼ cup cream
• 1/2 tsp cardamom
• 1 TB honey
• ¼ tsp salt 

Combine all of above until smooth. 

Soup Assembly 

Place soup in bowl. Top with cooked ravioli and a dollop of cream.