By September 12th was yesterday. Twenty-six years since the collapse. I didn't write last year's post about it expecting to write about it again, but the anniversary comes whether you expect it or not. It's like a tide — predictable, unstoppable, and deeper some years than others. This year it was deep. This year, with Clay making decisions about his future, with the Army and the football and the what-comes-next, I felt the collapse more acutely than I have in years.
I didn't write a full post about it. Last year was the big one — the full story, the seventeen hours, the darkness. This year I just want to note it. To say: I survived. I'm still here. Twenty-six years of being here. Twenty-six years of mornings with coffee and evenings with bourbon and Mondays with soup beans and a wife who fell asleep on my shoulder on Valentine's Day and three children who are healthy and alive and making choices. That's what surviving looks like from the inside: not dramatic, not cinematic, just daily. Just showing up to the kitchen and making soup.
Speaking of soup: I made a soup this week that's not Betty's. It's mine. Bourbon butternut squash soup. I know — it sounds like something from a restaurant in a city I'd never visit. But it's fall and the butternut squash was at the farmers market and I had bourbon and a blender and curiosity, which is a dangerous combination for a man who usually cooks from the 1950s.
Roast a butternut squash: halve it, seed it, brush with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, face down on a sheet pan at 400 for forty-five minutes until soft. Scoop out the flesh. In a pot, sauté diced onion and garlic in butter. Add the squash, four cups of chicken broth, a tablespoon of maple syrup, a pinch of nutmeg, salt, pepper. Simmer for twenty minutes. Blend until smooth. Stir in a generous splash of bourbon and a quarter cup of heavy cream. The bourbon adds warmth and complexity and the cream makes it velvety and the whole thing is fall in a bowl, which is what I need when September 12th comes around — a bowl of something warm and gold that reminds me that the world has colors and flavors and reasons to keep showing up.
Connie said it was the best soup I've ever made. Not "that's good" — "the best." From Connie. I'm writing that down. I'm having it notarized. I may have it tattooed. Craig Hensley: made the best soup, survived the mine, still here.
That bourbon butternut squash soup got me thinking about squash in a way I never had before — the way roasting it low and slow in a hot oven turns something plain and hard into something soft and gold and almost sweet. Butternut and spaghetti squash aren’t the same vegetable, but they’re cousins in the same fall family, and once you understand how heat works on one, you start to understand the other. If you’re going to lean into squash season the way I’ve apparently decided to, it helps to know the best way to cook spaghetti squash — because once you get it right, the strands come out tender and clean and ready for whatever you want to build around them, which is maybe a small metaphor I won’t push too hard.
How to Cook Spaghetti Squash (The Best Way!)
Prep Time: 10 min | Cook Time: 45 min | Total Time: 55 min | Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 1 medium spaghetti squash (about 3 lbs)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven. Heat your oven to 400°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or foil for easy cleanup.
- Cut and seed the squash. Carefully halve the spaghetti squash lengthwise — a sharp, heavy knife helps here. Use a spoon to scoop out and discard the seeds and stringy pulp from the center of each half.
- Season. Brush the cut sides generously with olive oil, then season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder if using. Flip the halves cut-side down on the prepared baking sheet.
- Roast. Roast for 40—50 minutes, until the skin yields easily when pressed and a fork slides into the flesh without resistance. Larger squash will need the full 50 minutes.
- Rest and shred. Let the squash cool for 5 minutes, then flip cut-side up. Use a fork to scrape the flesh from the skin in long strokes — it will separate into noodle-like strands naturally. Season to taste.
- Serve. Use immediately as a base for sauces, soups, or bowls, or store the strands in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 110 | Protein: 1g | Fat: 7g | Carbs: 12g | Fiber: 2g | Sodium: 290mg