Creamy Butternut Squash Soup

Even though I love soups all year round, they are especially soothing and comforting as the days get cooler. Butternut squash soup is something I look forward to all year, and as soon as I see it makes an appearance in my local farmer’s market, it quickly finds its way into my shopping cart.

My favorite way to enjoy vegetables is to roast them. Robust and hearty autumn vegetables seem to especially benefit from the dry heat of the oven, as they soften and caramelize. I have to admit, that there have been plenty of times that as I’ve taken a baking sheet of roasted veggies from the oven, I find myself sampling this morsel and that one, leaving me quite a bit short for a recipe that I was in the process of making. I can’t seem to help myself!  The solution seems to be to always make a little bit extra, since I know that part of it will quickly disappear, and I can happily report that it’s been working.

Naturally, this butternut squash soup starts out with roasting the butternut squash. As it caramelizes, the natural sugars are drawn out and add so much flavor to the finished soup. Instead of using lots of butter and flour to create a cream base for the soup, I add potato, and it thickens the soup, without making it heavy. I love this simple, luscious soup and I hope you give it a try too. 

Ingredients:

1 medium butternut squash (3-4 lbs), peeled, seeded and chopped into 1 1/2 inch pieces

1/4 cup olive oil, for roasting

1 Tablespoon butter or oil, for sautéing

3 shallots, minced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 carrot, peeled and grated

1-2 Rusett potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1 inch pieces

3-5 sprigs of thyme

4-5 cups chicken or vegetable broth

1/4-1/2 cup heavy cream

salt and ground black pepper, to taste

Parmesan cheese, finely grated, to garnish, optional

fresh thyme, parsley or chives, to garnish, optional

Instructions:

Prep all the ingredients.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.

Toss the prepped butternut squash with the 1/4 cup olive oil (I used a little bit less) and season with salt and pepper. It really doesn’t matter what size you chop the butternut squash into, but the smaller you cut it, the faster it will roast. Spread out the butternut squash evenly into a large rimmed baking sheet. Roast the butternut squash in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes. If you chop the butternut squash into bigger pieces, you will need to roast it longer. The butternut squash should be fork tender and golden and slightly charred in some places.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large, heavy bottomed pot or dutch oven. Add the shallots and garlic. Cook for about 3 minutes, on medium high heat, just until the shallots are tender. You can use onion instead of shallots, but I prefer shallots. They have a much more mild taste, which is perfect in this light soup.

Add the carrots to the pot, season with salt and pepper and cook for another 3 minutes. Add the potatoes, thyme and chicken broth to the soup. I usually add only 4 cups of broth to the soup and after it is done cooking and is pureed, I see if it needs more broth. Adjust the thickness of the broth to your liking. As soon as the butternut squash is ready, add it to the soup as well.

Bring the soup to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook, covered, for an additional 15-20 minutes, just until the potatoes are tender. Discard the thyme sprigs.

Transfer half of the soup to the blender and puree.

Pour the pureed soup into a medium bowl and puree the remaining half of the soup. Pour all of the soup back into the pot that it was cooking in. Add the heavy cream, as much or as little as you prefer. Taste the soup and adjust the seasoning, if it needs it.

Garnish the soup with finely grated Parmesan cheese and fresh herbs. Other garnishes that you might like to consider are homemade croutons, or roasted pumpkin seeds.