As squash becomes the focus at our local farm stand for in-season produce, we love buying all the different varieties of winter squash. It's Fall. That means it is time for this creamy, buttery, and, most importantly, easy butternut squash soup recipe.
We keep it really, really simple, with step-by-step instructions and easy-to-find ingredients you may already have in your kitchen. Butternut squash is probably one of my favorite things about fall, and this recipe will help move it straight to the top of your grocery list!
Butternut Squash Soup Recipe Ingredients
- Large Butternut Squash. Once you get a feel for this recipe, you can vary this according to the size of your family and how much soup you want to make. Adjust the amounts of the remaining ingredients depending on the size of your squash.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil. For sauteeing the onion.
- Onion. A sweet onion is nice for this recipe. Yellow or white onion also works. I don't recommend red onion because it has a slight bitterness.
- Apples. I think Gala or Honey Crisp work best but use what you have in your kitchen for sure. No need to make an extra trip. Apple helps add sweetness and flavor.
- Vegetable Broth. Vegan No Chicken broth can be used as an alternative.
- Salt.
- Cinnamon.
- Pumpkin Pie Spice. A spice mix you can buy at the grocery store this time of year, this includes cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, and allspice. Some versions may include cardamom.
- Freshly Ground Black Pepper.
- Agave Syrup. Maple syrup or raw honey will also work for sweetening.
How to Roast a Whole Butternut Squash
If you love butternut squash but hate having to peel it and cut it, we have a great trick for you! It will save you a ton of trouble and will make this Roasted Butternut Squash Soup extra sweet and creamy (and as a bonus, you'll get to keep all your fingers..)
For my fingers' sake, I usually pick up a tray of pre-cut butternut squash. And that was exactly my plan when I started writing the shopping list for this recipe until a friend gave a great tip: roast the squash whole.
All you have to do is place it in the oven at 400ºF and bake it for 1 hour and 20 minutes, or until tender. Simple, right? No knife, no fights, just a lot of sweet, nutty flavor. if you have the patience and want it to cook even faster, you can cut it in half.
After the butternut roasts in the oven, the flesh inside becomes so buttery and sweet. All you have to do is scoop out the seeds, peel off the skin, and it's ready to go.
How to Make Butternut Squash Soup
For this super simple roasted butternut squash soup, we combined the tender, creamy squash with sweet apples, onions, a touch of spice, and broth in a large soup pot and cooked it low and slow to allow all the wonderful flavors to meld together. Stir occasionally to keep the soup from sticking. Puree the soup once everything has softened, and cooled, and then continue cooking it to improve the flavor even more.
The taste and texture of the finished soup are on point! The natural sweetness of the apples and butternut squash blend beautifully with the savory onions and spice for a meal that becomes a tradition. Plus, it is naturally vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free without any sacrifice.
How to Blend Butternut Squash Soup
You have so many options! If you have an immersion blender, it is the easiest, and you can work right in the stockpot you are using. A regular blender will also work. If you are using a regular blender, let the soup cool completely, and be very careful moving the soup from your stovetop to the blender. I recommend you puree it in batches to keep things easier. When blending soup make sure you close the lid tightly and put wrap it with a kitchen towel, in case any steam or warm soup splashes.
What to Serve with Butternut Squash Soup
No need to overthink this. It's perfect by itself for a light lunch. Add a crusty bread, simple salad, or tasty sandwich to make it a more filling meal at lunch or dinner. Use it as a first course for your Fall dinner parties. A salad with a nice vinaigrette will be complimentary.
Popular Variations and Additions
- Add a dash of coconut milk to your bowl at the table for even more creaminess when you don't want heavy cream.
- Keep one cup portions of mashed potatoes in your freezer to have on hand in case your soup needs to be thickened. It's quick and easy!
- Sage, garlic cloves, fresh herbs such as rosemary or thyme, cayenne pepper, or curry powder are all common additions. You wouldn't want to add them all at once, but one or two might be a nice change of pace.
- Homemade croutons, spiced chickpeas, candied pecans, Kale chips, or spinach chips top the soup nicely. We also have several suggestions for toppings linked below.
Toppings for Butternut Squash Soup
If You Loved This Vegan Butternut Squash Soup
We have more butternut squash recipes for you to try!
- Mashed Butternut Squash with Spiced Chickpeas
- Hasselback Roasted Butternut Squash with Cranberry Pecan Balsamic Glaze
- Vegan Butternut Squash Apple Stuffing
- Cauliflower Gratin with Butternut Squash
- Vegan Butternut Squash Soft Tacos
- Wild Rice Soup with Mushrooms, Butternut Squash and Sweet Potatoes
Did you like our roasted butternut squash soup recipe?
If you enjoyed this recipe, it would help us tremendously if you left us a star rating in the comments below or on the recipe card. Do you have any questions about the recipe? Do you need a swap for any of the ingredients? We are here to help, just leave us a question in the comments below.
Roasted Buttenut Squash Soup
- Total Time: 2 hours 45 minutes
- Yield: 8 - 9 cups 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
If you love butternut squash but hate having to peel it and cut it, we have a great trick for you! It will save you a ton of trouble and will make this Roasted Butternut Squash Soup extra sweet and creamy.
Ingredients
- 1 large butternut squash
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large onion, diced
- 3 medium-sized organic apples (gala or honey crisp work best), unpeeled, cut, and cored
- 5 cups vegetable broth or vegetarian no chicken broth
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp pumpkin pie spice
- ¼ tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tbsp agave, maple syrup, or raw honey (for non-vegan option)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil
- Place the butternut squash, whole, on the lined baking sheet and bake for 1 hour and 20 minutes. Remove it from the oven and set it aside, until it's cool enough to handle
- Cut it in half length-wise. Scoop out the seeds, turn it skin side up, and remove the skin with your hands. Place the flesh in a bowl and set aside.
- Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot. Add the diced onion and cook over medium heat for 5-6 minutes. Add butternut squash and mash it with the back of a large wooden spoon
- Add the apples, broth, salt, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer, covered, for 45 minutes
- Let the soup cool completely and blend until smooth and creamy
- Pour the blended soup back into the pot, add agave, and cook on low for another 15-20 minutes
- Adjust seasoning to your liking.
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 2 hours 30 mins
- Category: Soup
- Method: Roasting
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 106
- Sugar: 11
- Sodium: 439
- Fat: 3.3
- Saturated Fat: 0.5
- Unsaturated Fat: 2.6
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 20.5
- Fiber: 3
- Protein: 1
- Cholesterol: 0
Paula Zevin
What a great idea to roast the squash whole! Will definitely try this approach to anything that uses pureed butternut. It probably works for other kinds of winter squash as well. Thanks!
Vicky & Ruth
I am sure it will
Kris Boydstun
Roasting the squash whole is genius. I also saw a post recently where someone wrapped it in foil and cooked it whole in the crockpot. I will try both!
Chanie@BusyInBrooklyn
This is exactly what I do! For soup or pie - I always roast it whole. It brings out it's natural sweetness so I never have to add any sweeteners! Sometimes I roast a few at at time and freeze the flesh in containers!
Vicky & Ruth
It is such a great idea to freeze the flesh! Thank you!
Valerie
Wouldn't there be a risk of the squash exploding in the oven, from steam build-up inside it? I know someone who had an eggplant explode when she baked it, and she got burned. So I'd be pretty scared to bake a whole butternut squash in the oven -- even though it sounds MUCH easier than chopping up a raw one. I think I'd want to at least poke holes in it with a fork before baking. Or maybe I'd cut it in half.
Just a thought. I'd hate for anybody to get burned by exploding squash!
Vicky & Ruth
That is a really good point. We are really not sure if the squash can explode or not, we have never experienced that with a squash or an eggplant. If you are afraid of that happening it would be a good idea to cut the squash in half length wise before roasting.
Vanessa @ VeganFamilyRecipes
Hi Vicky and Ruth,
Lovely recipe! I've always roasted butternut squash in halves. It's such tough work trying to chop it up when it is uncooked. I love how you added apples to the soup. Sounds delicious!
Vicky & Ruth
Thank you very much. Cuting the Squash in half is also a nice easy roasting option.
Tami Weiser
Love this recipe ladies! I also love butternut squash and the soup options are limitless. And BTW that you used something so considerate to the allergy sensitive community. That is really wonderful..
Vicky & Ruth
Thank you Tami!
Melissa {lilmisscakes}
I love butternut squash soup and also buy the precut. I love love love this tip! Roasting the squash whole is genius.
Vicky & Ruth
I know, a friend told us about it and we love the idea of roasting the butternut squash whole.
Lee Cohen
Amazing soup, I enjoyed it both hot and cold
Vicky & Ruth
Thank you!
Raquel
This is my favorite soup EVER!!! The crunchy topping adds the most delicious crunch and spice- it is truly the best!
Rivka Marcus
This is an absolutely delicious soup. I made it for a party and increased the recipe 4x. I went easier on the pumpkin spice and cinnamon, but increased the salt and pepper proportionalIy. I also had no need to sweeten the soup. It does take time to cool the soup down, before using a blender. I sat my pots in ice. I recommended this soup highly.
Vicky & Ruth
Thank you so much for your feedback Rivka!
Cindy
Great recipe!! Love the idea of adding apples. Perfect as the cold weather is coming.
Vicky & Ruth
Thank you! The apples add the perfect amount of sweeteness. Enjoy!
cindy faust
Just made this soup- so easy!! What a clever idea to roast the squash... very delicious, healthy, quick! Thanks for another great recipe!!
Vicky & Ruth
Thank you do much Cindy. Enjoy!
Vicky & Ruth
Thank you do much Cindy. Enjoy!
Raquel
I just made this butternut squash soup and it’s my favorite! Creamy, delicious, and perfect for the fall!
Rebeca
Great recipe. This soup is amazing. Love it 🙂
Stephanie
This is the best butternut squash soup! I love thatI don't have to peel the butternut squash
Sarah
This is my favorite butternut squash soup, so easy to make and a crowd pleaser.
Ilene
First time I've made any butternut squash soup and I loved it!
It was the tip on roasting the squash first that caught my eye. Never would have tried this otherwise.
Many thanks for another great recipe.
Ilene
Vicky and Ruth
Thank you so much, so glad you enjoyed it!