Woodfired Curried Smoked Squash Soup

1. Split butternut squash in half, season with salt and pepper, and smoke on a Traeger grill at 250F until soft. This typically takes almost 2 hours, but can vary greatly depending on the size of the squash.
2. Optionally, add sweet Vidalia onions and a couple cloves of garlic to the smoker alongside the squash until soft and smoked.
3. Once the squash is soft, scoop out the flesh. Combine the smoked squash flesh, smoked onions, and smoked garlic in a blender.
4. Add 2-4 tablespoons of Thai curry paste (use 3 tbsp as an average), 2-3 cups of chicken stock (use 2.5 cups as an average), 2 teaspoons of smoked paprika, and 1/4 cup of heavy cream to the blender.
5. Purée the mixture until smooth. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.
6. Transfer the puréed soup into a Dutch Oven. Place the Dutch Oven back on the grill at 225F on 'super smoke' mode for 30-40 minutes to infuse more smoky flavor.
7. For a velvety finish, you can run the soup through a fine mesh strainer after heating.
8. Serve warm, optionally spicing it up with hot sauce or hot curry paste, or finishing with sour cream or candied smoked squash seeds for an added flavor boost.