This Butternut Squash and Apple Soup is a warm, Autumnal hug in a bowl! Velvety butternut squash gets lightly sweetened with the addition of Honeycrisp apple. This soup imparts a lovely warmth on a chilly night.
Butternut Squash Soup: A Hug In A Bowl
When the coziest food comes to mind, no doubt Butternut Squash Soup is at the top. This quintessential Fall soup envelopes you in its warm embrace, making it impossible to put your spoon down. True comfort for your belly!
For my version, I wanted a little something extra to offset the *sometimes* blandness that squash offers. My solution? Lots of spices and another Fall favorite: apple!
Making Butternut Squash & Apple Soup
The beauty of soup, in general, is that it’s incredibly versatile. In most cases, you’re adding your favorite ingredients to a pot to slowly simmer. Sometimes they’re smoky, sometimes they’re healing, and sometimes they’re nostalgic. However you make them, one thing is for certain: soup always comforts.
For a soup like this one, it couldn’t be simpler: sauté your ingredients, add some broth, allow it to simmer. After a quick blend, whether by food processor, blender, or immersion blender, (my favorite way to blend soups!), you’ll have silky, creamy soup without any milk or cream needed.
Serving Butternut Squash and Apple Soup
As previously mentioned, this soup doesn’t need anything additional to make it delicious. However, the following toppings make for a lovely presentation:
- Coconut milk, cream, or half and half
- Cinnamon or freshly grated nutmeg
- Roasted butternut squash seeds (recipe below in the notes!)
- Toasted baguette or warmed slices of sourdough
Butternut Squash and Apple Soup
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 pounds butternut squash
- 3 Tbsp olive oil, divided
- 1 sweet yellow onion, chopped
- 1 honeycrisp apple, peeled, cored, and chopped
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp nutmeg, more to taste
- Freshly cracked pepper, to taste
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- Heavy cream or coconut milk, optional for serving
For the Roasted Butternut Squash Seeds:
- Resrved butternut squash seeds (about 1/8-1/4 cup)
- 1 tsp olive oil
- Salt
- Freshly cracked pepper
- Cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Cut butternut squash in half. Remove seeds and drizzle with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Season lightly with salt and pepper (you'll be adding more seasoning when the soup comes together). Roast squash until tender, about 30-35 minutes. Allow squash to cool slightly, and scoop out flesh.
- In a large dutch oven or soup pot set over medium heat, add remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add chopped onion and apple, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and pepper, sauteeing until fragrant.
- Add vegetable broth and slightly cooled squash. Allow soup to simmer for 20 minutes, until all ingredients are tender. Using an immersion blender, process soup until desired consistency is reached. Alternatively, allow soup to slightly cool and blend in food processor or blender. Taste and adjust seasonings to your liking.
- Garnish with roasted butternut squash seeds (recipe below), and feel free to serve with cream or coconut milk if you prefer dairy free!
For the Roasted Butternut Squash Seeds:
- Soak seeds in warm water for 5 minutes. Drain thoroughly, removing any residual butternut squash pieces.
- Allow seeds to dry at least 30 minutes (as the squash roasts!) on a towel lined plate. You want the seeds to be as dry as possible.
- Toss seeds with 1 teaspoon of olive oil, and conservatively with spices. A pinch of salt should suffice, as well as of cinnamon, but season to your liking.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes, monitoring to ensure seeds don't burn. Allow to cool before garnishing bowls of soup.
Notes
I’ve linked a few products in this post that are affiliate links. Note that I may receive a small commission.