Cream coloured bowl of squash soup that has swirls of brown sugar in it. On a dark green background
December 5, 2023

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

December 5, 2023

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

Cream coloured bowl of squash soup that has swirls of brown sugar in it. On a dark green background

Rich and creamy, this Roasted Butternut Squash Soup is subtly sweetened with pear, flavoured with {vegan} brown butter, and garnished with a swirl of brown sugar.

Easily made vegan or vegetarian, it contains only 6 ingredients and most of the preparation time is “passive” — meaning, you put the squash in the oven and walk away! You can even make this a day ahead or so, as it reheats very nicely.

Ingredients

Ingredients for Roasted Butternut Squash Soup
  • Butternut squash: You need about 3 cups of squash for this recipe. You could substitute with Acorn, Kabocha, or Red Kuri squash.
  • Butter/Margarine: Use your choice of butter, margarine or oil. 
  • Milk: Use your choice of plant or animal milk
  • Brown butter or vegan brown butter: Make your choice of brown butter. 
  • Pear: Any type of ripe pear works. 
  • Optional, hot chili powder: If you'd like a counterpoint of heat, add a pinch of chili powder. 
  • Brown sugar:  This is for garnish. You use a small amount and swirl it into the soup with a toothpick. If you're vegan or plant-based, keep in mind that some brown sugar may have been processed with animal parts (although none remains in the final product. See  Sugar Sugar, honey, honey: A guide to sweeteners for plant-based diets.

Preparing the Squash

Butternut squash cut in half from top to bottom, on a dark green background.

Start by cutting your butternut squash in half from top to bottom. Then just grab a spoon and scrape out the seeds.

Next, brush a little melted butter or margarine on the squash and pop it into the oven at 350F. The larger the squash the longer the cook time, but start with about 35 minutes and then check it. You want the squash to be fork tender throughout. Since squash is not uniformly shaped, some parts will be done faster than others. Don’t worry too much about that, just get the whole thing fully cooked.

Once the squash is cooked, let it cool before scooping out the flesh. Optionally, you can put the cooked squash into a container and leave it in the fridge for a few hours or overnight. The cold squash will be easier to work with.

Top-down view of butternut squash with seeds removed

Make the brown butter or vegan brown butter

Next, you’ll make the brown butter which gives this soup its luscious-buttery taste. If you’re vegan, make my vegan brown butter. Either recipe takes less than 20 minutes and you can make the butter ahead and store it in the fridge until you’re ready to use it. 

Blend the soup

Once you’ve got the squash cooked, and the brown butter made, you’re on easy street! You are literally throwing everything in the blender and blending until nice and creamy.

Now, we’re at the final step and it’s fun: Pour the soup into your serving bowl, sprinkle some brown sugar about, swirl a toothpick around to make a pretty design, and say: Soup’s on!


Tips: Cooking for mixed groups 

This recipe is just 6 ingredients: squash, pear, milk, brown butter, salt, and brown sugar.  For the vegan version I use vegan brown butter and cashew milk, but feel free to use any kind of unsweetened milk you like.

If you want to make both a vegan and a vegetarian version, get your squash roasted and all your ingredients lined up and then run the batches through the blender separately.

 If you're vegan or plant-based, keep in mind that some brown sugar may have been processed with animal parts (although none remains in the final product. See  Sugar Sugar, honey, honey: A guide to sweeteners for plant-based diets.

Pin for Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

Recipe Card

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Creamy roasted butternut squash soup, inspired by Thanksgiving squash with butter and brown sugar. Easy prep. Vegan or vegetarian. Gluten free.
Servings 5 cups
Calories 184 kcal
Author Sylvia Eastman

Ingredients

  • 1 butternut squash (about 3 cups) (or substitute acorn or Kabocha, or Red Kuri)
  • 1 tablespoon melted butter, margarine, or oil
  • 2 cups milk of choice
  • 1/4 cup brown butter, vegan brown butter, or butter (See recipe notes for brown butter and vegan brown butter recipes)
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1 small pear (about 2/3rds of a cup)
  • 1/4 teaspoon hot chili powder, optional
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • brown sugar, to garnish

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350F.
  • Prepare the squash:
    Slice the squash from top to bottom and remove the seeds.
    Place cut side up on a baking sheet and brush with a little bit of melted butter or margarine. 
    Roast for about 35 minutes until tender. Tip: You can prep the recipe up to this point and then store the squash in a sealed container in the fridge until you are ready to carry on. 
    Once the squash is cool enough to handle, remove the flesh from the skin. You will need 3 cups of squash. 
  • Make the soup:
    In a blender, combine milk, squash, brown sugar, brown butter/vegan brown butter, pear, salt, and hot chili powder if desired. 
    Blend until well-combined. Thin as desired with extra milk. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired. Transfer to saucepan to heat thoroughly if necessary. {Some blenders have a "soup" mode that will heat the soup so it's warm enough to eat.}
  • Garnish with sprinkles of brown sugar, using a toothpick to make a fancy design, if desired. 

Video

Notes

Make Ahead
You can roast the squash earlier in the day, or the day before, then store it in a sealed container in the fridge. It will be easier to separate the squash from its skin when it is cold. 
Substitutions for Butternut Squash
You can replace the butternut squash with acorn squash or Kuri squash, also known as red Kuri squash, or orange Hokkaido pumpkin.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition count is an estimate, based on using Becel margarine and cashew milk, and without the brown sugar garnish. 

Nutrition

Calories: 184kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 24mg | Sodium: 292mg | Potassium: 330mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 9315IU | Vitamin C: 18.9mg | Calcium: 50mg | Iron: 0.6mg

Courses, Cuisines, and Keywords

Course
Soup
Cuisine
American
Keywords
dairy-free cream soup
|
easy soup
|
roasted butternut squash soup
|
squash soup
|
vegan butternut squash soup
|
winter vegetable soup recipe

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Hello!


We're creating a course: Baby Steps to Plant-Based Eating

Yes, seriously. Trying a plant-based diet can be overwhelming and we'd like to help. 

This course is for you if: 

  • you're curious about plant-based eating, but don't know where to start 
  • you have family or friends who eat plant-based and you'd like to be able to cook for them
  • you've dabbled with plant-based cooking, but would like to expand your repertoire 

Baby Steps to Plant-Based Eating will: 

  • answer your pressing questions
  • cultivate your confidence 
  • arm you with recipes

Want to learn more?  

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