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 was great!! There’s a brightness and balance that I was pleasantly surprised about. I added cream (~1/2 cup) instead of extra broth and its so good!
I’m so glad you loved it!
This is a good base recipe. I made as written and felt it was missing something and the sage was too strong. I added a splash of coconut milk, a drizzle of maple syrup, and maybe a 1/2 tsp of garam masala and another 1/4 tsp of salt and it was awesome!
This is my absolute favorite soup recipe in all the world. As soon as the weather starts to cool off, I crave this. This soup is also a great meal to freeze for later. I make a rosemary focaccia to serve with it. Yum!
Fantastic! Second time making it for my pregnant wife. The garden only had one smaller squash left, so I added a sweet potato to make up the difference. Simply delicious.
Amazing, creamy, comfort dish. It uses no dairy, no butter, no coconut, no nuthin’. Just had my first bowl… it’s my new favorite soup! Also, I used my immersion blender… saves time and mess (remember: safety first, though… don’t let anyone near an immersion blender without proper safety and/or supervision. Definitely not a toy.)
Hi Clay, I’m so glad you loved the soup!
Butternut squash is a pain to peel and cut, so I “set it and forget it” pre-cooking it in a large crock pot a day in advance. So 6 or 7 hours on “liw”, uncover, then let it cool for another 2-4 hours. Easy! In my opinion, it’s much easier (and safer) to cut up and scoop out the squash this way than trying to peel, scoop and dice a “rock”. Just adjust the steps using cooked squash.
Absolutely as good as advertised, and so so easy. Thank you for this recipe!!
I love living on a tropical Island. But, also enjoy cozy edible reminders of my previous life in New England. I found this 5 star recipe some time ago, made it today without sage and, it exceeded my highest expectations. Thanks so much for this gem recipe which is beyond Scrumptious! YUMMY ?
I’m so glad you loved it!
I have made this twice in the past two weeks and it’s a total hit!! Zero substitutions or changes to the recipe. I served it with baguette, salted butter and pork tenderloin. A new family favorite!
Hi Elise, I’m so glad you love the soup!
I had some leftover roasted butternut squash that I used so as not to waste. This recipe was quick and delicious. I can’t believe how easy it was. My husband and son loved it too!
Hi Laure, I’m so glad you all loved the soup!
Very delicious. I like to add a little coconut milk.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
We just made this. Left out the ginger as per our preference. This soup tasted so good! Will definitely make again!! Thanks
Hi Abi, I’m so glad you loved it!
Hello,
Any substitutions for the sage and rosemary?
Thanks
This soup is so delicious!! I love it !
Hi Luz, I’m so glad you love the soup!
Obsessed with this recipe! I make it several times a month! I’m wondering if this recipe would work the same with frozen butternut squash? This might be helpful to know for when butternut squash isn’t in season, but I still want the soup. Thank you!
Hi Jordyn, I think it would work well with frozen squash!
This soup was amazing! Thank you for sharing your recipe.
I’m so glad you loved it, Lucy!
Amazing soup. I’m trying to get on board the whole foods plant based wagon and this was wonderful. I peel and cube my butternut squash, drop it in a large ziplock bag and pour in some evoo. (It’s easier to coat this way). Roast in oven 400 degrees on a baking sheet to caramelize until just golden brown. I also freeze my ginger whole. It loses some flavor until you grate it. That way it is always on hand/less waste. It’s so expensive. I love ALL of your recipes. It’s my only go-to for recipes now! Thank you!
Hi Kathi, I’m glad you enjoyed it!
OMG i made this last night and it was amazing! Thank you for sharing!
This sounds delicious! We don’t have fresh rosemary, can this be subbed for dried or anything else?
Hi Kati, yep, you could use dried rosemary here. I’d start with 1 teaspoon and add more to taste.
Absolutely amazing soup. Huge hit in my household. Made the corn muffins to go with the soup and the combination of texture, and flavour is spot on. Thank you for the recipe .
Hi Natalie, I’m so glad you loved the soup and the muffins!
I’m trying to use leftover squash but don’t have quite enough. Do you think I could add some pumpkin purée to make up the difference?
Of course… (I’m not the author of the recipe)…. you could sub in many different squashes… try them out… mix ‘n match.