A deliciously creamy and super easy to make Chipotle Butternut Squash Soup. Made with farm-to-table veggies and a slightly spicy smoky chipotle sauce.
Time to make the soup! Butternut squash is one of the best winter veggies around and I love making it into a soup.
This recipe is super easy to make, can be made ahead of time, and there’s always lunch leftovers for the next day. Wooohooo! We all love some lunch leftovers.
I usually make a curry and ginger version of this soup but one day I left those out and put in some chipotle peppers instead. The smoky/slightly spicy flavors against the sweetness of the squash and carrots were delicious.
This time I used canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce but I’ve used Tabasco Chipotle sauce before and it’s a great substitute, maybe just a touch milder in spiciness.
These carrots came from a local organic farm so no need to peel them. I always leave carrots unpeeled if they come from a reliable organic source and I just scrub the outside really well with a soft vegetable brush.
It’s nice to get a little caramelization on the carrots and onions. Light brown in color is good. Just don’t burn them because the soup will taste burnt and nobody likes burnt soup.
I found the greatest tip online today (gotta love the Internet). I bought a huge 5 pound squash and, since I really like having all my fingers intact, there was no way I was cutting into this monster of a veg raw. Y’all know how hard it is to cut into a winter squash!
I usually peel the raw squash, cut it in half, scoop out the seeds, and then cut into 2-inch cubes. So I Googled “roasting butternut squash whole” and came up with the full instructions on Whole Foods Market’s website.
The only thing I changed was the oven temperature from 400 to 350 and I cooked it for 90 minutes. It was slightly underdone so next time I’ll bake it about 15 minutess more. I peeled it, cut it into chunks, and finished cooking it in the broth. This was much easier compared to peeling and dicing a big ole raw squash.
The squash cut up after baking in the oven and then cooking in the broth.
If you’d like to garnish the soup with roasted pumpkin seeds, you can make your own right at home! Just place desired amount of raw (green hulled) pumpkin seeds on a baking sheet and roast for about 4-5 minutes in a 400F degree oven. You’ll hear them popping so just keep an eye on them so they don’t burn. And that’s it! Simple and easy. No need to season them unless you want to.
To make seasoned ones, toss the raw pumpkin seeds with a little oil and whatever seasonings you prefer and then roast for 5 minutes.
Raw green pumpkin seeds on the left, then after they are roasted. See how they plump up when they are done?
These seeds are better tasting and healthier to snack on than peanuts. You can also use them to make pumpkin seed butter in place of peanut butter.
I made pretty little hearts with the chipotle sauce. Sweet…
Those are garlic cheddar angel biscuits on that plate and the recipe is coming up in the next post! So much to look forward to 🙂
- 1 large (5 pound) butternut squash
- 1 Tb olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 carrots, diced
- 6 cups chicken broth or vegetable broth
- 1 Tb canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce or Tabasco Chipotle Sauce
- sour cream or plain yogurt, optional
- roasted pumpkin seeds, optional
- chopped cilantro, optional
- Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Wash outside of squash, pierce with knife in 3-4 places, place on baking sheet and roast whole for about 1-1.5 hours, or until knife easily slides in. After squash has cooled enough to handle, cut down middle, carefully scoop out seeds, then scoop out all the pulp. At this point, the squash pulp can be tightly covered in a container and placed in the refrigerator for a few hours or days, until you are ready to use it.
- Put olive oil in large heavy bottomed pot over medium high heat. Saute onion and carrots until slightly brown.
- Stir in cooked butternut squash pulp, broth and Tabasco chipotle sauce; combine well. Heat to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 15-20 minutes.
- Remove from heat and use an immersion blender to puree the soup until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve garnished with sour cream or plain yogurt, roasted pumpkin seeds, chopped cilantro, and extra chipotle sauce.
If I’m good, will Santa bring me this?
I don’t know about Santa. You may just just have to make it it yourself 🙂
Karrie, this soup is calling my name!! I will be making a batch of this tonight!! Thanks for the fabulous recipe as always! xoxox
Yay Katie! Please let me know how you like it 🙂