Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Fennel and Apple
This Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with fennel and apple is smooth, cozy and full of fall flavor! Roasted squash, apples, fennel, onion and garlic are briefly simmered with sage and warming spices, then puréed until silky smooth. It's naturally vegan and wonderfully creamy without a drop of cream!
Servings: 6 servings
Equipment
- Cut Resistant Glove (optional)
- Large pot (or Dutch oven)
Ingredients
- 1 (2 ½-3 pounds) butternut squash (See Notes.)
- 1 large fennel bulb about 1½ pounds, if possible, save some fennel fronds for garnish
- ½ large yellow or Spanish onion about 8 ounces
- 2 large apples about 1 pound, peeling is optional (See Notes.)
- 3-4 garlic cloves
- Olive oil or other neutral oil for roasting
- 6 cups vegetable broth use low- or no-sodium if possible
- 3-4 sage leaves
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp ground black pepper
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- Pinch cayenne pepper (optional)
- 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice See Notes.
- Optional Garnishes: freshly ground black pepper, toasted pumpkin seeds, pumpkin seed oil, fennel fronds, ground cinnamon, maple syrup
Instructions
- Prep and gather all ingredients according to specifications above. Place a rack in the top 1/3 and a second rack in the bottom ⅓ of the oven and preheat it to 425°F. Use the convection setting if your oven has that option. (Please see the section above in the blog post for Step-By-Step instructions with photos.)
- Prep Vegetables and ApplesNOTE: Keep all items in separate bowls.Cut the butternut squash into 1- 1½” chunks. (See Notes below for details on this.) Core the fennel and cut it into 1” chunks. Peel and cut the onion into 1” chunks. Core the apples and cut them in quarters, peeling them first if desired. Peel the garlic cloves.1 (2 ½-3 pounds) butternut squash , 1 large fennel bulb, ½ large yellow or Spanish onion, 2 large apples, 3-4 garlic cloves
- Toss the diced butternut squash very lightly with oil, then spread it out in an even layer on a parchment-lined sheet pan.
- Combine the prepped fennel, onions and garlic cloves and toss them very lightly with oil. Spread them out in an even layer on a parchment-lined sheet pan.
- Finally, rub the apple halves with a little oil and place them on a separate pan or baking dish.
- Roast Veggies and ApplesPlace the butternut squash on the lower rack in the oven and the other veggies and apples on the higher rack.
- Roast all veggies and apples in the 425°F preheated oven until tender and caramelized. Remove the apples after about 20 minutes, then rotate the other sheet pans and continue roasting another 20-25 minutes.
- SimmerTransfer all the roasted vegetables and apples to a large pot or Dutch oven. Add the vegetable broth, sage and spices and turn the heat to high. Cover and bring the mixture to a simmer. Reduce the heat as needed to maintain a gentle simmer and cook for 8–10 minutes, stirring a few times.NOTE: All the ingredients are cooked; the simmering is to develop the soup’s flavors.6 cups vegetable broth, 3-4 sage leaves, ½ tsp salt, ¼ tsp ground black pepper, ¼ tsp ground nutmeg, Pinch cayenne pepper
- Puree & FinishTurn the heat off and carefully puree the soup until smooth using an immersion blender. Add the fresh lemon juice and continue pureeing.See Notes below for lots of information about using one if you never have before.
- Taste the soup and adjust the flavor as needed. If you prefer a thinner soup, add a bit more broth.
- Serve while hot. I love to add alight drizzle of earthy pumpkin seed oil and a sprinkling of toasted pumpkin seeds and freshly ground black pepper to my bowl, but ground cinnamon and a touch of maple syrup work as well for a sweeter slant. It’s completely up to you and the soup is great without any garnishes as well. Buon Appetito!
Video
Notes
Yield: This recipe makes about 10 cups soup. I figured on about 1½-cup portion per serving but adjust accordingly. Cut this recipe in half for a smaller yield (or double it for a larger one!).
Selecting Butternut Squash:
- Pick a butternut squash that feels heavy and dense for its size, is fully tan or cream with no green or yellow patches and does not have any soft or mushy parts.
- You’ll need about 2 pounds diced, raw butternut, so start with a squash that’s about 2½ –3 pounds. You’ll lose some weight from trimming, peeling and deseeding.
- After roasting, you should have about 1½ pounds total roasted butternut squash. If you have extra, just use it for another purpose. It goes great tossed into a salad or enjoyed on its own as a side dish.
- Scrub the outside of the squash clean.
- Slice about ¼” or so off both ends of the squash revealing the orange flesh.
- Use a sharp vegetable peeler to remove the tough outer skin. You may need to peel it a couple of times until you see the bright orange squash flesh.
- Then, use a sharp knife to cut the neck and bulb apart.
- Slice the bulb in half and scoop out all the seeds and fibers with a spoon.
- Then cut both the neck and bulb pieces into cubes that are approximately 1- 1½” dice.
- The size is not that important as, ultimately, the squash will be pureed in the soup. But it’s important to cube/chunk the squash to get a good amount of caramelization, which will add flavor to the soup.
- You can roast the butternut squash up to 2 days in advance of making the soup. Just store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator until you need it.
- NOTE: If you feel skittish about prepping butternut squash, you have two options: (1) buy pre-peeled squash in chunks (which is generally available in grocery stores year-round), or (2) use a cut-resistant glove (linked above), which I find very handy!
- You can use almost any apple here except really tart Granny Smith apples. Honeycrisp apples work great, as well as lightly tart apples like Pink Lady, Gala, Braeburn McIntosh, Jonathan, Jonagold, Empire and Cortland.
- Excess tartness can always be adjusted with a touch of maple syrup.
- In a pinch, you can also use pears in this soup.
- Soup leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Consider portioning extra soup into containers to enjoy down the road! Reheat it slowly over medium-low heat while stirring, adding additional broth or water if needed.
- It’s best to turn the heat off before using it. It can be turned back on when you’re done.
- Immerse it in the liquid before turning it on.
- Keep it moving for best results and do not hold it steady in one place. Immersion blenders do their best work when moved around and tilted while blending. This helps the blender to pick up all ingredients and purée evenly.
