I have had this butternut squash staring at me in the kitchen for a few weeks. Fortunately, it has been patient in waiting to be transformed into a marvelously Spicy Butternut Squash Soup. This vegetarian/vegan soup is slightly sweet and a bit spicy. If you have any leftover, this will be great to take to work for lunch. Your colleagues will be wondering why you didn’t bring any for them! It may be a little time-consuming to make, but the end result is so worth your effort.
We will begin with slicing off the top and bottom of the butternut squash. Stand it upright on its new flat base and slice down vertically. Scoop out the seeds. With some fibers still remaining, I was able to peel off that layer by scraping and pulling up to remove that liner. Use a vegetable peeler to remove the outer skin. Whew! Now, slice and dice what remains.
Place coconut oil in your Dutch Oven, or comparable pot, with the onions, carrots and celery. I am fascinated with how many things I can do with coconut oil! I experimented a lot with it this past year and made Dairy-Free Ginger Cookies and Pina Colada Zucchini Bread, for example.
Add the vegetable broth, apple and squash to the onion mixture. Bring to a boil and simmer, covered, for about 30 minutes.
Ladle ingredients into a large food processor and operate on highest setting until thoroughly puréed.
Return to pot and whisk in spices. Simmer for about 5 more minutes. Ladle into bowls and sprinkle with a chiffonade of basil and/or fresh thyme.
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 6 servings
- 1 c. chopped yellow onion
- ¾ c. shredded carrots
- ¾ c. diced celery
- 2 T. coconut oil
- 1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored and chopped-Approximately 1 "heaping" cup
- 1 butternut squash, seeded and diced- Use 3 x apple quantity- 3 "heaping" cups
- 1 quart vegetable broth
- ⅛ t. nutmeg
- ⅛ t. cinnamon
- ⅛ t. cayenne pepper
- ¼ t. Mediterranean sea salt
- ¼ t. freshly ground black pepper
- Prep onions, carrots and celery.
- Peel, seed, slice and dice butternut squash.
- Peel, core, slice and dice Granny Smith apple.
- Sauté onion, celery and shredded carrots in coconut oil until onions are translucent.
- Add vegetable broth, squash and apple to onion mixture.
- Bring to a boil, then return to simmer.
- Cover and continue to simmer for about 30 minutes or until squash is soft.
- Ladle into a large food processor on highest setting until completely puréed.
- Return to Dutch Oven and add spices. Simmer for another 5-10 minutes to allow spices to meld with blended vegetables.
- Enjoy!
