Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

One word to sum this soup up would be: divine. It fulfills many of the things I strive for in my meals: healthy, in season and delicious. This is fall in a bowl.

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

• 1 butternut squash, peeled, seeds removed and diced
• 1 small red onion, sliced
• 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 1 32oz carton of organic low sodium vegetable broth
• 4 tbsps butter
• 1/4c pure olive oil
• 1/2tbsp sea salt + 1 tsp, divided
• 1/2tbsp of dry thyme, cinnamon and garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp of pepper + more to taste

Preheat oven to 425. Prepared squash on a large cookie sheet with oil, 1/2tbsp of sea salt, thyme, cinnamon, garlic powder and pepper. Toss to coat squash evenly. Roast in oven for 20 mins, tossing once. Meanwhile, heat a large soup pot over medium heat. Melt two tablespoons of butter and add in onions and garlic and season with 1 tsp of salt and 1/4 tsp of pepper. Saute until just softened and starting to caramelize. Once squash is done, add it in with onions and saute for about 5 mins, stirring occasionally. Add in carton of vegetable broth and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cover with a lid and allow to cook for 10 mins, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and puree with a stick blender or in batches in a food processor or blender. Stir in remaining two tablespoons of butter and season with additional salt, if needed. May be topped with nuts, chives, a dollop of sour cream, greek yogurt or dried fruit. We chose dried cranberries. Enjoy!

After peeling squash, cut the top half off before cutting bottom portion in half to scoop out seeds. Much safer way of doing it.

Dice squash in similar sizes for even cooking.

After tossing squash with oil and seasonings, make sure they are in an even layer.

This is the amount of doneness you want the onions and garlic at.

After squash and onions have been sauteed together, add in broth and bring to a boil.

Once soup is pureed, adding in the extra butter is definitely optional but it adds a nice richness to the soup and finishes it off nicely.

We finished our soup off with some dried cranberries. The sweet, chewiness of the cranberries paired with the rich, creaminess of the soup was a match made in heaven!