How does your garden grow?

All righty. The vegetables in the garden are growing like crazy and first we have butternut squash galore...

Like the baby growing:

And then the stockpile:

It's gotten so that we're creating art of sorts from them (check the two at left whispering to each other about the one about to be sacrificed):

All fun aside, the squash shan't go to waste and after a search online, and some quality time at the stove with $10 in ingredients, ladies and gentlemen, butternut squash soup:

Ingredients:

One 2-pound butternut squash—quartered, seeded, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
6 cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
5 thyme sprigs
2 garlic cloves, halved
2 medium leeks, white and pale green parts only, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 celery rib, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 thick slices of bacon, cut crosswise 1/2 inch thick
2 packed cups coarsely chopped collards or kale
One 15-ounce can pinto or roman beans, drained and rinsed
1 medium carrot, finely diced
1 red bell pepper, finely diced
1 cup corn kernels
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1.    In a large, heavy pot, combine the broth, squash, thyme, garlic, leeks and celery and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer over low heat for 45 minutes.
2.    In a medium skillet, heat the vegetable oil. Add the bacon strips and cook over moderately high heat, turning once, until crisp, about 7 minutes.
3.    Discard the thyme sprigs from the soup. Working in batches, puree the soup in a blender. ***you may want to save a few chunks of squash for presentation purposes*** Return the soup to the pot. Add the bacon, collards, pinto beans, carrot, bell pepper and corn and bring to a boil. Simmer over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, about 7 minutes. Season the soup with salt and pepper and serve.

Make ahead: The soup can be refrigerated overnight. Reheat gently.
Nutritional content for one serving: 264 cal, 10 gm fat, 1.4 gm sat fat, 37 gm carb, 7 gm fiber.

Thanks to the lovely photos on What Did You Eat for being the inspiration to make this delicious soup.