I can’t stand how good roasted butternut squash tastes. It’s so good that I’ve been making it over and over and over. As a matter of fact, I even shared a recipe for it on this very blog. The one I shared is a great recipe and it’s one I’ve enjoyed time and time again.
Weeks ago, Hannaford (our grocery store) had a sale on butternut squash. I think they were selling them for $.49 per pound. If you aren’t aware, that’s a really good price. Because of this, Laura and I bought two gigantic five pounders and a three pounder. And since they’re winter squash, they store for a good long time.
These three squash, along with a few others from our garden, have been sitting in a basket on our counter since we acquired them. I’ve been looking at them, wondering what I should do with them. I didn’t want to simply peel them and cut them up into chunks to make some sort of a mashed squash side dish. They’re far too valuable for that. Today, I decided that I should have another go at butternut squash soup, but that I should try another recipe. Other than the one I’ve been using since the one I shared here.
I did a quick search online and found a good one put out by Cookie + Kate. I’ve actually used a few recipes by Kate before and I’ve had good luck with them. Because of this, I was confident that my five pound squash would be put to good use.
The Recipe
In general, butternut squash soup recipes are fairly simple to put together. All they require is the cooking of the squash itself, sauteing some onion or shallot, some seasoning and then blending. The trick, however, it to pull as much flavor out of each step as possible, focusing on the roasting and sauteing. The more caramelization, the better. And if you can get some fond out of the sauteing process, even better than that.
Today’s recipe is really good. It doesn’t rely on too much dairy for its creaminess. Only 2 tablespoons of butter is all you need. Instead, the soup gets its flavor from the squash, onion, nutmeg, syrup, garlic and the cooking process. I’ll go through the process below.
Overall, I’d say this is a great roasted butternut squash soup recipe and I’d definitely give it another try.
Ingredients
Serves: 6-8
1 Large Butternut Squash (About 3 Pounds), Peeled and Cut into 2 Inch Pieces
Regular Olive Oil
1 Medium Sized Sweet Onion, Chopped
1 Teaspoon Salt
3 Teaspoons Garlic, Minced
3 Teaspoons Maple Syrup
1/2 Teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
Ground Black Pepper
4 Cups Vegetable Broth
2 Tablespoons Butter
Step-by-Step Instructions
During the cooking process for this recipe, it’s important to go the extra step to develop the necessary caramelization in regards to the onion and the squash. The times I’ll offer below are only suggestions. You should continue cooking until you get the desired result. I’ll explain more below.
Pre-Heat Oven
Adjust one of your oven racks to the center position and pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees.
Season & Roast the Squash
Add the pieces of cut squash to a large bowl. Then, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the bowl as well. Also, season the squash with a few pinches of salt and a few pinches of pepper. Mix well until all the pieces are coated with the oil.
When all the pieces are coated with the oil, spread them out on a large baking sheet.
Then, add the baking sheet to the warm oven for 45 minutes. After that time, check the bottom side of a few of the pieces to see if they have browned. A nice golden brown is what you’re going for. If they haven’t browned yet, continue roasting them until they have. At that time, remove them from the oven and set aside for later use.
Sautée the Onion & Garlic
Warm a large saucepan over medium heat. When it’s to temperature, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and the chopped onion. Also add 1 teaspoon of salt and cook for a few minutes until the onion begins to brown.
Now, there’s a fine line between caramelizing onions and burning them. Continue cooking the onions until you see the bottom of the pan begin to coat with a sticky brown substance. At that point, add in the minced garlic and stir for another minute and then turn off the heat.
Add Ingredients to Saucepan
With the onions caramelized, add the pieces of squash that are on the baking sheet to the large saucepan. Then, add the syrup, nutmeg, a few pinches of ground black pepper and 2 tablespoons of butter. Mix until the butter is melted.
Then, add in the 4 cups of vegetable broth and mix well, making sure to use your wooden spoon to scrape up the brown layer that formed on the bottom of the pot. That’s huge flavor right there.
Add Soup to Blender
What you currently have is the essence of the soup. All that needs to happen now is for it to be smoothed in a blender. With that in mind, add a few cups of soup to your blender at a time and blend until smooth. You may have to use a wooden spoon to jiggle things around a bit so it all blends. When each batch is finished, pour it out into a large bowl.
Add to Bowls & Serve
The soup is now finished. You can taste it to be sure it’s to your liking and season with salt and pepper if you desire. If it’s good (which it should be), use a ladle to scoop some soup from the large bowl and pour it into some smaller bowls. Serve when hot.
The Final Soup
I’d like to thank Laura for helping out with these photos. This next one is mine:
Laura’s is at the top of this post. While I’m okay at taking photos of the actual process of putting a recipe together, she’s much better at accessorizing the finished product. It’s great to have such a talented photographer on my (one man) team.
This next one is Laura’s as well. She added some garlic bread to the mix for some flair. Enjoy!
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