Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Parmesan and Cream
This rich, creamy soup has real depth, with roasted squash, cinnamon-spiced cream and Parmesan simmered together until velvety-thick. Make it now, or freeze the roasted squash to cook later.
Ingredients
- 1 3-4 pound (1.5-1.7 kg) butternut squash
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) extra virgin olive oil
- 1 chopped yellow onion (1 cup)
- 1 cup (250 ml) heavy cream
- 3 whole garlic cloves peeled and smashed
- 1 cinnamon stick or ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2½-3 cups (590 ml) chicken broth or vegetable stock
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1½ teaspoons kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper or to taste
- 2 tablespoons chopped parsley rosemary or sage (or a mixture)
Instructions
Roast the butternut squash
- Preheat oven to 400 (200C) degrees. Line a baking sheet or baking pan with parchment paper.
- Slice 1 3-4 pound butternut squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds with a large spoon. Drizzle the flesh side of the squash with olive oil and season generously with salt and black pepper.
- Place the squash halves cut-side down on the baking sheet. Cover with a sheet of aluminum foil and bake until the squash is tender when pierced with the tip of a knife, about 35-40 minutes depending on the size of the squash. Set aside until cool enough to handle. Scrape the flesh from the butternut squash halves with a spoon. You should have 4-5 cups of squash. At this point, you can refrigerate it in a covered container until you're ready to make the soup (up to 3 days in advance).
Make the soup
- While the squash is roasting, pour 1 cup heavy cream into a small saucepan and add 3 whole garlic cloves and cinnamon stick. Bring just to a boil, then immediately remove from the heat and allow the flavors to steep 15-25 minutes.
- Heat 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add 1 chopped yellow onion to the pot. Cook, stirring frequently, until it's softened and translucent, 3-5 minutes. Pour the cream through a mesh strainer set over the soup pot (or just fish out the garlic cloves and cinnamon stick with a spoon).
- Add the cooked squash to the pot. Stir in 2½ cups of the broth, ¼ cup of the Parmesan, 1½ teaspoons salt and ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper Bring to a simmer and cook 10 minutes. Puree the soup directly in the pot using an immersion blender until very smooth (or blend in batches in a blender). Stir in more broth as needed if you prefer a thinner consistency.
- Serve the soup in bowls, sprinkled with some parsley, chili and Parmesan cheese.
Video
Notes
- Roast the squash up to 3 days in advance: Scoop out the flesh and store in a container or ziptop bag, or freeze up to one month.
- To add more warm spicy flavor, add 1/4 teaspoon each of ground ginger or 1/8 teaspoon of nutmeg to the cream infusion.
- Skipping the cream-infusion step? Cook 1–2 thinly sliced garlic cloves with the onion, add a dash of ground cinnamon, then stir the cream straight into the pot.
- Butternut squash soup keeps in the refrigerator 3-5 days, and in the freezer for 1 month.
- If you use a blender to puree the soup, be careful to only fill the blender jar about halfway. Hot soup expands quickly under pressure, making a mess if it explodes out of the lid.
Nutrition
Calories: 258kcalCarbohydrates: 8gProtein: 6gFat: 23gSodium: 886mgFiber: 1gSugar: 4g
