Butternut Squash Soup With Sage and Parmesan

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 Spanish onion, diced
• 3 stalks celery, diced
• 2 leeks, white part only, coarsely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, sliced thin
• 1 1/2 quarts vegetable or chicken stock
• 1/4 pound Parmesan piece or rinds
• 2 butternut squashes, peeled and cubed
• 3 leaves fresh sage, chopped
• 1 bay leaf

1. Melt the butter in a large stock pot over medium heat.
2. Add the onion, celery, leeks and garlic and cook them until they are soft.
3. Add the vegetable or chicken stock, Parmesan pieces or rinds and simmer 15 to 20 minutes.
4. Add the butternut squash, sage, bay leaf, salt, pepper, nutmeg and cayenne.
5. Cook until the squash is tender (about 10 to 15 minutes).
6. Remove the bay leaf and the cheese and puree one quarter of the soup in a food processor and return it to the stock pot (the cheese -- not the rind -- can be crumbled or grated as a garnish for the soup).
7. Heat through and correct seasoning.
8. Garnish the soup with scallions and serve.
9. Pass the freshly grated Parmesan separately.

unsalted butter, onion, stalks celery, leeks, garlic, vegetable, parmesan, butternut, sage, bay leaf

Taken from cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/769 (may not work)