Butternut Squash Soup Recipe
This Butternut Squash Soup Recipe is perfectly creamy, nourishing, and so easy to make! Made with simple, wholesome ingredients, this naturally vegetarian and gluten-free butternut squash soup is cozy and delicious and everyone's favorite fall comfort food! Stovetop and slow cooker instructions included.
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 191kcal
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 medium yellow onions - chopped
- 4 stalks celery - chopped
- 5 carrots - chopped
- 2 small sweet potatoes - peeled and cut into large chunks
- 5 cloves garlic - chopped
- 1 2-inch piece fresh ginger - peeled, roughly chopped and smashed
- 2 apples - cored and diced
- 2 medium butternut squash - peeled, seeded and chopped into 1-inch cubes
- 2 teaspoon salt - plus more to taste
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper - plus more to taste
- 6 cups low-sodium vegetable broth - or water or low-sodium chicken broth (plus more as needed)
- ½ cup half and half - (note 1)
- Optional Toppings - Homemade Croutons, cheese, fresh herbs, nuts, seeds, everything-but-the-bagel seasoning, bacon, etc.
Instructions
Stove Top Method
- Cook the root vegetables - Heat one tablespoon olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring often, for 4-5 minutes or until the onions soften and turn translucent. Add the carrots, celery, and sweet potatoes and mix well to combine with the onion. Cover and continue to cook over medium heat for 10-15 minutes, stirring often.
- Add the apples and butternut squash - After approximately 10 minutes or so, after the root vegetables have had a chance to soften slightly, stir in the minced garlic and ginger and sautè for approximately 1 minute. Add the chopped apples and butternut squash, mixing well to combine.
- Add the broth and simmer - Add the water or vegetable broth to the pot (note 2) and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Allow vegetables to simmer for approximately 30 minutes, or until soft and mushy (note 3).
- Blend soup - Once all the vegetables have softened, remove from heat and grab your best blender, food processor, or immersion blender (note 4+5). Working in batches, fill your blender approximately half full with the butternut squash and broth mixture and blend until completely pureed. Pour your pureed soup into a new pot. Repeat until all the vegetables have been pureed into soup.
- Season to taste -Turn the pot with your pureed soup on low heat. Stir in the 1/2 cup half-and-half and season with salt, pepper, and additional cream to taste. Stir often to prevent soup from burning.
- Serve - Serve with all your favorite toppings including homemade croutons, pumpkin or sunflower seeds, fresh herbs, shredded cheese, bacon bits, or pomegranate arils, if desired.
Slow Cooker Method
- Divide the ingredient amount listed in the recipe card in half.
- Prepare vegetables – Chop the vegetables and apples into large chunks. Peel and roughly chop the garlic and ginger.
- Transfer to a large slow cooker – Transfer the vegetables, ginger, garlic, salt and pepper, and broth to a large slow cooker(at least 6-quarts).
- Cook until tender – Cook until all vegetables are soft and tender, approximately 6-8 hours on low, or 4 hours on high.
- Blend – Stir in the half-and-half or creamer and use an immersion blender to puree the soup. Or, transfer to a large blender and blend it there.
- Season to taste and serve – Season with additional salt and pepper, to taste. Serve garnished with all your favorite toppings!
Notes
- If you plan to cook this recipe in your slow cooker, half the recipe so that it will fit into a 6-quart pot.
- You may use any creamer you like or no creamer at all. It's entirely up to you. Delicious additions include half and half, heavy cream, or coconut milk.
- The broth or water should reach just below the top of the chopped veggies - in other words enough for all the vegetables to simmer in the broth, but not so much that they are swimming in it.
- For soups like this one, you can't really overcook your vegetables, so no need to set a timer for 30 minutes exactly. As long as all your vegetables are nice and mushy, you're good to go.
- You may want to let your vegetables and broth cool slightly before blending. If you're in a hurry, make sure to only fill your blender halfway and pulse before blending. If your mixture is too thick or you're having trouble blending, don't hesitate to add more vegetable broth or chicken stock until you reach your desired consistency.
- Soup will thicken after cooling. Add additional vegetable broth or water as needed to reach the desired thickness when reheating.
- Nutrition information does not include suggested toppings.
- Optional toppings include:
- Homemade Croutons
- Mozzarella or Parmesan cheese
- Fresh herbs
- Nuts and Seeds (pepitas, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, etc)
- Everything-but-the-bagel seasoning
- Bacon
Nutrition
Calories: 191kcal | Carbohydrates: 40g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 6mg | Sodium: 635mg | Potassium: 949mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 25399IU | Vitamin C: 46mg | Calcium: 138mg | Iron: 2mg
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