Served piping hot with a hunk of crusty bread, this creamy, nourishing butternut squash soup recipe is fall comfort food at its best.
My favorite fall tradition is making butternut squash soup on Sunday afternoons. On a brisk day, there’s nothing more soothing than chopping and simmering vegetables over a warm stove. As you cook, the kitchen fills with the cozy scent of sage, rosemary, and butternut squash, and when you’re finished, steaming bowls of butternut squash soup (that will last all week!) reward you for your work.
In the past, my go-to butternut squash soup recipe has included coconut milk and curry spices, but this fall, I found myself craving one that was a bit more traditional. When I say traditional, I don’t mean that I use chicken stock, heavy cream, or butter in this recipe. It’s a delicious, all-veggie healthy butternut squash soup with ginger, sage, and rosemary. This is basically fall in a bowl.
We’ve been loving this soup lately – it’s creamy and nourishing, perfect for satisfying cozy fall cravings. With only 10 ingredients, it’s easy to make, so cook a big batch today, and enjoy the soup all week long! Happy fall. 🙂
Butternut Squash Soup Recipe Ingredients
To make this easy butternut squash soup recipe, you need 10 simple ingredients:
- Butternut squash – This soup packs in 3 pounds of squash, so look for a medium-large one at the store or farmers market. If you don’t have a scale at home, I recommend weighing the squash when you buy it!
- Yellow onion and garlic –Â These veggies add delicious depth of flavor.
- Fresh sage and rosemary –Â I don’t reach for rosemary as often as some other fresh herbs, but I absolutely love it here. Along with the sage, it makes this soup cozy and complex.
- Ginger – Its warm flavor highlights the autumnal taste of the herbs and squash.
- Extra-virgin olive oil –Â 2 tablespoons add the perfect amount of richness.
- Vegetable broth – Because the blended squash becomes creamy on its own, there’s no need for dairy, coconut milk, or nuts here! With veggie broth as its base, this is a vegan butternut squash soup recipe.
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper –Â Add them with the onion at the start of the cooking process, but make sure to taste and adjust at the end as well. That way, you’ll make a soup you really love!
Let’s cook!
First, chop the veggies! Sauté the onion until it becomes translucent, add the squash, and cook until it begins to soften. Then, stir in the herbs, garlic, and ginger. Pour in the broth and simmer until the squash becomes tender, about 20 minutes.
When the squash is soft, transfer the soup to a blender. Blend until the soup is vibrant orange and creamy. Finally, pour it into bowls, garnish with chopped parsley and pepitas, and enjoy!
What to Serve with Butternut Squash Soup
Enjoy this soup as a starter, side, or main dish. When I’m making it the center of a meal, I serve it with good crusty bread, homemade focaccia, avocado toast, or corn muffins and a simple veggie side or fall salad. Here are a few of my favorites:
- Simple Lemon Green Beans
- Roasted Cauliflower with Lemon Zest
- Simple Roasted Beets
- Rainbow Kale Salad with Carrot-Ginger Dressing
- Shredded Brussels Sprout Salad
- Roasted Brussels Sprouts
- Roasted Beet Salad
Alternatively, serve it as an appetizer with a hearty vegetarian main dish like Roasted Cauliflower Steaks, Vegan Meatball Sandwiches, Homemade Mac and Cheese, Sun Dried Tomato Pasta, or a grilled cheese sandwich!
If you love this butternut squash soup…
Try my ginger miso soup, curried lentil soup, or many-veggie soup next, or check out this post for more of my favorite soup recipes!
Butternut Squash Soup
Equipment
- 5.5-Quart Dutch Oven (I personally use the Staub Cocotte)
- Blender (I've used my trusty Vitamix for years)
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion, chopped
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 (3-pound) butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cubed
- 3 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
- ½ tablespoon minced fresh rosemary
- 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
- 3 to 4 cups vegetable broth
- Freshly ground black pepper
For serving
- Chopped parsley
- Toasted pepitas
- Crusty bread
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, salt, and several grinds of fresh pepper and sauté until soft, 5 to 8 minutes. Add the squash and cook until it begins to soften, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes.
- Add the garlic, sage, rosemary, and ginger. Stir and cook 30 seconds to 1 minute, until fragrant, then add 3 cups of the broth. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook until the squash is tender, 20 to 30 minutes.
- Let cool slightly and pour the soup into a blender, working in batches if necessary, and blend until smooth. If your soup is too thick, add up to 1 cup more broth and blend. Season to taste and serve with parsley, pepitas, and crusty bread.
my hubby detests ginger, crazy I know, but can I add garlic instead or just omit?
Yep, you can omit it!
Absolutely love this soup and have made it several times over the past two months. Rave reviews from family!!
Quick question, do you know the nutritional content for the soup or if yo can direct me to where I can locate the information. My spouse is pre diabetic and I am trying balance carbs vs proteins Thank you
Hi Chris, I’m so glad you love the recipe! We don’t calculate nutrition facts for our recipes, so I recommend using an online nutrition calculator like MyFitnessPal to get an estimate. Hope this helps!
The recipe suggests a 5.5 quart vessel, approximately how many quarts or cups will this recipe actually yield.
Hi Shiela, Any large pot will work for making this recipe! We’re not sure of the exact yield.
I have made this soup and loved it. I am wondering if you have any ideas for a good protein rich complementary recipe as I am one of those Type O’s that needs protein.
Thanks!
Hi Barbara, I’m so glad you loved it! I would pair it with a salad that has beans/legumes, like this kale caesar salad with chickpeas: https://www.loveandlemons.com/kale-caesar-salad/, or this lentil salad: https://www.loveandlemons.com/lentil-salad/
Made this soup exactly as the recipe calls for and it’s delicious. I am not a soup person, and I am not a squash person, but somehow squash ended up in my kitchen so I turned to this recipe. Great choice on my part. I ate two bowls and my kids ate it! It’s creamy, flavorful, well seasoned – it’s fall in a bowl. Goes great with French bread.
I’m so glad you and your family loved the soup!
So yummy and creamy! I used beef broth and it turned out delish!
So glad you loved it!
Hi, could you roast the squash first or would you not recommend this? Thx!
I would recommend making this recipe as written, but if you prefer a roasted squash soup, you could try this recipe instead. Hope this helps!
It says the soup yields 6 servings. What is the serving size per person?
Hi, the number of servings is an estimate–we haven’t measured it exactly. I would guess somewhere between 1 and 2 cups.
Can this soup be frozen? Thanks!!!
Hi Carolyn, yes! It freezes great.
I made this according to the recipe, but I added about half an inch of finely chopped Spanish chorizo in with the onions. The soup is delicious!
So glad you enjoyed the soup!
Loved this soup! It turned out beautiful, was very easy to follow
Hi Nicole, I’m so glad you loved it!
Very delicious, and easy to make… will make again with our home grown garden squash!
I’m so glad you loved it!
Does anyone know if this soup will freeze well? I’d love to be able to make a batch and save some for later.
Hi Kim – yep! We freeze it all the time.
This is by far the best butternut squash soup ever. Took me a little bit longer this time (2nd time I’ve made it ) because I doubled recipe. Used my Dutch oven & it still cooked quickly. Thank you for sharing – I was looking for a recipe that didn’t call for cream!! This is wonderful just the way it is.
I’m so glad you loved the soup!
Looked around for something to do with a butternut squash I had on hand, and found this one. Didn’t have fresh herbs on hand, so used Pency’s Gale a Street chicken and pork rub instead (which also has chilis in addition to sage and rosemary. Came out luscious and creamy with a bit of a kick. Daughter said it’s the best soup she’s ever had and was thrilled it is vegan. Thank you so much for sharing!
Came out great, and only sustained moderate blood loss from cutting myself instead of the squash
Aah hope you’re ok! If I have a particularly hard squash, I find that it can be helpful to pre-bake it whole for a few minutes before cutting. Glad you enjoyed the soup!
Love it!!! Very delicious! I made my own croutons for the toppings.
I’m so glad you loved it!
Fabulous! I added some thyme as well since I was cleaning out my herb garden. Fresh sage is definitely front and center in this beautiful soup!
I have 3 cups of frozen pureed squash…..can I use it, and how should I adjust the other ingredients?
Hi Judy, I’d recommend making this squash soup recipe instead. It starts with 2 1/2 cups pureed squash, so you won’t have to make any other adjustments to the recipe. The leftover 1/2 cup squash would be great in a dip like this butternut hummus!
Can dried sage be used instead of fresh?
Hi Fiona, it won’t have quite the same flavor, but the soup should still come out well. I would start with 1/2 teaspoon dried and add more to taste.
I did used dry, just add more and it was delicious too.
Are use us recipe as a base for estimates and threw it all in a Instapot after rough chopping everything. 35 minutes on the soup setting and then in the Vitamix. Turned out great!
I’m glad it worked out well!
Great soup! I’ve made it a few times and my kids love it!! Any thoughts on cinnamon and how much to use?
Hi Sara, cinnamon would be yummy here! I’d start with 1/4 teaspoon and add more to taste.
I don’t have an Instapot. It should only take 20 of so minutes in a regular but Rough chopping is not enough and it took over 40 minutes in a covered skillet. I still had to add coconut milk to make it creamy.