Butternut Squash Soup - Recipe

SO I'm not really much of a squash person. There is something about the sweet mushy texture that has taken me a long time to embrace. It's the same reason I have mixed feelings about sweet potatoes and over ripe bananas. However, this soup has won me over. I think it's the spices, they make it really special and it warms your belly up on a cold day. Roasting the veggies also makes your house smell great! I was the only one who ate much of this at our house but that's fine with me since it froze so well!


Butternut Squash Soup

1 medium butternut squash
1 medium sweet potato
4 medium carrots
1 granny smith apple
4 cloves garlic
olive oil for drizzling

1 TBS olive oil, chopped
1 medium onion
1/2 TBS butter
1 tsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/2 tsp salt (if needed, depending on stock)
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp cinnamon
6 cups vegetable stock
milk/cream/almond milk to taste

*This makes a big batch, but it freezes well.

and here is how to make it quoted directly from the email my sister Meagan sent me when I asked for the recipe.


"Preheat oven to 375 and get out a large roasting pan (or two). Cut about a half inch off the top and bottom of the butternut squash, stand upright, then cut in half. Scoop out the seeds and save them for roasting ( which you'll do separately from the vegetables). Peel the squash with a vegetable peeler and cut into one inch cubes. Then peel and chop the sweet potato, carrots (make these a little smaller), and apples into similar sized pieces. Place everything, including 4 peeled garlic cloves into a large bowl. Drizzle with olive oil (maybe a couple of tablespoons), stir to coat, and then scoop everything onto the roasting pan(s). Roast for 45-60 minutes, stirring once or twice, until all of the vegetables are soft.

When the vegetables are almost finished roasting, warm 1 TBS olive oil over medium in a large soup pot and add the chopped onion; cook until translucent. Then add the sugar (and yes, this must be actual sugar) and butter (and, yes, this must be actual butter) and stir to coat. Cook for about a minute. Then add all of the spices--cumin, cayenne, ginger, cloves, and cinnamon. By this time the vegetables should be done roasting and you can add them all to the soup pot. Stir to coat with the onions and spices. Then add the 6 cups vegetable stock and bring to a gentle boil. Lower the heat and simmer for about 15 minutes, making sure that all of the vegetables are tender. Turn off the stove and remove from heat. Blend until smooth with an immersion blender. If you like the consistency, you can leave it as is, but I find that it's more like a puree at this point than a soup. To thin, add warmed (in the micro) cream, milk, or unsweetened almond milk. I would highly recommend the unsweetened almond milk if you can find it. It's really good for you and adds a nice flavor.

Lastly, taste for salt! I use a vegetable stock that does not have added salt, so I add a 1/2 tsp with the spices and then usually some more at the end. (Rapunzel is the stock I get and it's so, so good.) If you can't find that, I would look for a low sodium veggie stock, either in liquid or dried form.

Also, 4 cloves garlic might sound like a lot, but roasting really tempers garlic, so it won't be strong at all."

Enjoy!