This month’s featured recipes include:

- Mud Cake, submitted by Shaunak Patel - perfect for Valentine’s day!
- Butternut Squash Soup, submitted by Sheena Banton (courtesy of Food Network) - a winter comfort food recipe

Mud Cake
Submitted by Shaunak Patel

Ingredients:
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1.75 cups strong coffee
1/4 cup Kaluah or whiskey
5 oz unsweetened chocolate squares
1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla

Preparation:
Preheat the oven to 275 degrees F. Generously butter a 10" Bundt pan and dust with cocoa. Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt. Heat coffee and liquor on low heat about 5 minutes. Add chocolate and butter and stir until melted. When smooth, add sugar and stir until dissolved. Let cool several minutes, then transfer to large bowl. Add flour about 1/2 cup at a time, beating after each addition. Add eggs and vanilla - beat for another minute.

Pour into pan and bake 1.5 hours until the cake pulls away from the sides and springs back when touched. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes in pan. Invert onto plate, but do not remove pan until completely cool.

Butternut Squash Soup
Submitted by Sheena Banton (courtesy of Food Network)

Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 40 min
Level: Easy
Serves: 6 (1-cup) servings

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion, thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, smashed
2 fresh sage leaves
2 teaspoons kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 medium canned plum tomatoes
1 medium butternut squash (about 2 pounds), peeled, halved, seeded and diced
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth or water
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan, optional cups flour

Preparation:
Heat the olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, sage, 1 teaspoon of the salt and season with pepper, to taste. Cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until soft and fragrant, about 15 minutes. Raise heat to medium-high, add the tomatoes, and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the tomatoes break up and the onions brown slightly, about 7 minutes. Add the squash and the remaining teaspoon salt, and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the squash is tender, about 12 minutes. Add the broth, bring to a simmer, and cook, uncovered, until the vegetables tender, about 20 minutes. Set aside to cool slightly.

Working in batches, puree the soup in a blender, or with an immersion blender. Return the soup to the pot and reheat over medium heat. Stir in the vinegar. Serve the soup in warm bowls with a touch of parmesan cheese if desired.

Have a great recipe you’d like to share? Send it to Steph Chien at schien2010@kellogg.northwestern.edu.