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.
This butternut soup recipe is a true gem! It’s not only quick and easy to prepare, but also incredibly tasty, healthy and satisfying. Exceptional! I am so lucky to have found this recipe. Thank you! ?
Can I use an immersion blender for this?
Yep, you can!
Thank you so much! I made this today and OMG it is so good!! So healthy and filling too.
I’m so glad you loved it!
I never comment on recipe blogs but I just have to this time. I’ve made this 3 times now and it’s absolutely delicious! I use Swanson chicken broth but otherwise keep the recipe the same. It will be my go-to recipe for butternut squash soup. Truly delicious!! Oh and I use an immersion blender as it’s much easier. 😉
Hi Michele, Thanks for your sweet comment! I’m so glad you love the soup.
I’m sure it’s on me, but I made this soup and it tastes bitter. I don’t know if it’s the vegetable stock I used (organic low sodum), or the ginger, or garlic? I added all the ingredients exactly how the recipe called for. I used two smaller butternut squash that weighed the correct amount, together.
Perhaps the onion and garlic got overcooked and bitter, or the garlic was ‘past its prime.’ Same thing goes for the ginger. I’ve had a bit of bitterness develop sometimes with these ingredients, so now I’m careful to use fresh ones and not to purchase ‘wrinkled’ ginger or to use any part of an onion that’s starting to turn yellowish and mushy. I’m also careful to taste any canned or packaged stock; sometimes they just seem ‘off’ to me. I have better luck with ‘Better than Bouillon’ in a jar or even the cubes, the vegan or vegetarian ones. Sorry you’ve had bad experiences.
I replied too soon. I just went online and found reasons for bitterness or sourness in squash soups. It could be from too much irrigation during the squash’s growing season or wide fluctuations in temperature while it was growing. There are other reasons, too. One writer suggested some ‘fixes.’ Ask your question online and read what you find. You’re not alone with your problem. It turns out this can happen with summer squash soups as well.
Absolutely delicious! I made it with roast butternut, skin on. I do have a great blender 🙂
Hi Joanne, I’m so glad you enjoyed the soup!
Where is the nutritional information?
Hi, we don’t calculate nutrition information for our recipes unfortunately, so the best way to get an estimate is to use an online nutrition calculator.
So easy and so good! Thank you!
How many calories in a serving?
Hi Penelope, we don’t calculate nutrition facts for our recipes, but you could use an online nutrition calculator to get an estimate.
I made this soup, and it turned out kinda sour. Any ideas why? Maybe the ginger? I’m not sure, it was strange like I had added lemon, but I only added what was in the recipe plus a potato, to make it even creamier.
Hi Julia, hmm interesting! I’ve never had this recipe turn out sour, and I’m not sure why it would have happened. It could be that individual squashes just vary in flavor.
This was literally the easiest recipe! I added a slightly more seasoning per my taste buds dash of cinnamon at the very end. Superb! Cannot wait for dinner! 🙂
Hi Audrey, I’m so glad you loved the soup!
I did not have ginger on hand so I left it out, but the soup needed flavor enhancement when it was done. I added a teaspoon of nutmeg and it was a game changer. Gave it a holiday flare.
Hi Janice, I’m so glad you enjoyed the soup! Nutmeg would be delicious here, great idea.
Excellant squash soop
This has been a family favorite of ours! It’s full of flavor and super easy to make. It’s perfect for our Idaho fall and winter days!
Hi Tiffany, I’m so glad you’re enjoying the recipe!
We absolutely loved the soup! The prep time did take much longer than 10 mins, more like an hour to wash and chop everything. That’s not bad though since the rest of it doesn’t take that long. The soup was very flavorful and filling. We kept a few chunks of squash out to have some chunk to it. We also had garlic toast with it. Will definitely make again.
Hi Hannah, I’m so glad you loved the soup!
We’ve had a cold snap in Florida and I just felt like making soup. This was perfect. I added cream to mine as well. Loved it. Thank you.
Hi Laura, I’m so glad you loved the recipe!
I made this soup as I was making dinner. I ate dinner as the soup was finishing up. I ended up eating 2 small bowls of this soup after my meal. It was that good! The fresh herbs add a savory goodness to the soup. As there is nearly zero fat, you can eat as much as you want! So, so delicious!
Hi Lisa, I’m so glad you loved the soup!
Made this for dinner last night and it was delicious! I roasted my butternut squash at 425 for 20 minutes, seasoned in salt,pepper and oregano to get more depth in flavor. Used an entire carton of non-chicken broth, added paprika and parsley. All in all was so delicious!
Hi Elena, I’m so glad you loved it!
Absolutely Delicious!! I have made many Butternut Squash soup recipes……but this is by far the very best!
Thank you for sharing.
I’ve used this recipe multiple times and my family loves it. Sometimes I add a 1/3 cup of heavy cream or whole milk, but it’s great just as it is.
I followed the recipe. It makes an absolutely delicious savory bisque. I added maybe 1/4 cup of broth at the end but actually loved the thickness. Incredible flavor. Deserves every star!!
Hi Lauren, I’m so glad you loved the recipe!