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.
Made this for cooking club and it was so delicious! Satisfied all my hearty, warm fall soup cravings. It was so rich and tasty, and easy to make!
Loved this soup, warm and creamy and perfect for cozy weather! I added some lentils to it for protein since I had it as a main dish, and they blended in well.
Just made this and it was delicious! Added plenty of black pepper to spice it up.
Hi, we really like ginger, but of course that might be our preference. To offset it, you could try mixing in more squash puree, or cream or coconut milk, which would dilute it. A bit more garlic might offset it as well.
Loved making this soup for the cooking club! Really pushed me to use up fall veggies!
This was the perfect rainy day comfort food!
This was so easy to make!
Delicious! I liked it with the pumpkin seeds and crusty bread.
I made this soup for the cooking club and it turned out even better than I thought! I am honestly not the biggest fan of butternut squash, but I thought I would try it anyway and it was delicious 🙂
I made this following the recipe exactly and thought it was the best tasting Butternut Squash soup I have ever eaten. I look forward to the day when I can invite friends over for a proper sit-down dinner and serve this as the first course.
Your posts are so beautiful and clear to follow. Thank you for providing delicious recipes in the most simple elegant way.
Soooo good! I drizzled a little maple syrup on top of each serving.
ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS!!! My husband also loved it! Thanks again.
This soup was delicious! It was actually my first time ever trying butternut squash soup, but it definitely won’t be the last time! I used dried herbs because that’s what I had on hand, and I stirred in a very small and awkward amount of leftover pumpkin puree because I didn’t know how else I could use it. Mopped up with a crusty piece of sourdough. Overall huge success!!
Very good!
Loved making this soup for the cookbook club.
I made this today on a cold, snowy day here in Colorado. I topped it with some lightly burnt sage and pepitas. Delicious!
It was sooo yummy and not complicated to make. My family loves butternut squash. I’ve always wanted to make a soup but was intimidated. Thank you for making it easy.
Nothing beats the spirit of fall to nourish the mind, body, soul and belly!
This was yummy and easy! I might add an apple next time. I love that little bit of sweet/tart.
Made this soup for the Cooking Club and it was HEAVENLY. I made it for my family for a rainy day lunch and everyone went crazy for it. The herbs give the soup the most incredible flavors and the aromas were just the cherry on top. It is the perfect fall recipe and I can’t wait to make it again! Thank you for this incredible recipe!