I love everything about soup—how it tastes, cooking it up, seasoning it just right, AND … making a large enough batch so I can enjoy leftovers for several meals after! 🙂 Yes, leftovers rock in my book. But that might be the problem with my recipe for Roasted Garlic Butternut Squash Soup. It’s just so good there may not be leftovers!
Now I have several different Butternut Squash Soup recipes that I make. I’m sure I’ll be posting the others sometime in the future, but today I wanted to share this recipe because it’s so delicious and extra special—perfect for a gathering like Thanksgiving or entertaining over the holidays.
What makes this recipe so wonderful? Well, there are several special touches that I’d like to highlight!
- The first is a head of roasted garlic. When roasted, garlic takes on a buttery, sweet, yet savory taste that really adds something special to this soup. Yeah, I know that roasting garlic can be a little time-consuming, so check the notes of the recipe for a quick method if you’re in a hurry.
- The second ingredient that I just love in this soup are Granny Smith apples. Tart yet sweet, these apples add an extra punch of flavor that is so yummy.
- Leeks are the third ingredient that really rounds out the taste of this soup. Although you can substitute onions, leeks really add a sweet, buttery, mild onion flavor that’s absolutely perfect.
- Finally, there’s a touch of ground ginger and maple syrup that just pulls this soup together in an amazing yet subtle way!
Can you tell how much I love this recipe? Just writing about it makes me want to cook up another batch! So definitely give this recipe a try. You and your guests will be thrilled with the result. And please, share a comment after you cook it up. I’d love to hear what you think!
Cheers!
Bruce
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Recipe: Roasted Garlic Butternut Squash Soup
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Yield: 0 about 8, 1 cup servings 1x
Ingredients
- 1 whole head of garlic (roasted (see notes))
- 3–4 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 cups leeks (thinly sliced (substitute onions if needed))
- 1 cup onion (diced)
- 4 cups butternut squash (cooked (see notes), peeled and cubed (3/4-inch) (about 1 medium squash))
- 2 granny smith apples (peeled, cored, and diced)
- 4 cups vegetable or chicken broth
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ginger
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- season with salt and freshly pepper to taste (about 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper)
Optional Garnish:
- Sour cream
- Pepitas/Pumpkin seeds
- green onion tops or chives
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large 8-quart saucepan. Add leeks, onions, and saute until tender (about 5 minutes). Stir in garlic, squash, apples, broth, maple syrup, and ginger. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes until the ingredients are tender.
- Use a blender (immersion or traditional) to puree the soup until nice and smooth, being careful to not burn yourself.
- Season soup with salt and pepper to taste. If desired, garnish with sour cream, roasted seeds, and green onions/chives..
Notes
We recommend organic ingredients when possible.
To roast a head of garlic, remove the outer, papery white skin from the head keeping the head/cloves intact. Trim the tip of the garlic head off, drizzle with a little oil, then wrap it in foil. Bake at 350F for one hour. Squeeze to extract garlic pulp and discard the skin. If you’re short on time, here’s a link to a quicker method to roast garlic in a microwave.
The squash can be cooked a day or two ahead of time. Cut the squash in half lengthwise and place cut side down in a baking dish. Add 1/2 inch of water and cover. Bake for 30 minutes at 350F. Squash should be cooked but not mushy.
Make sure the leeks are washed thoroughly and free of sand. A quick way to do this is to cut them in half lengthwise, then chop into 1/2-inch pieces using only the white part. Soak the pieces in a large bowl of water and swirl it around, then let the sand settle to the bottom of the bowl. Using your hands, scoop the leeks from the bowl and drain.
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
Kitchen Tips and Resources:
- Cuisinart’s immersion blender comes is handy for making this butternut squash soup, although my Blendtec blender does make it velvety smooth!
- A great kitchen peeler is essential for peeling apples, and I love my OXO Good Grips swivel peeler.
- If you’re looking for some cutting boards, do I have a great recommendation for you. I upgraded to these Epicurean non-slip cutting boards over a year ago, and I absolutely love them!
- I love pumpkin seeds (aka pepitas) on so many things … especially soup! If you haven’t tried them, here’s an organic brand that I buy called Food to Live!
