Creamy Butternut Squash Soup

Butternut squash soup is served in a black bowl.

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A rich, silky butternut squash soup made with garlic, Parmesan, and a touch of heavy cream.

Course Soup

Cuisine American

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 30

Total Time 45

Servings servings

Calories 142kcal

Author Vered DeLeeuw

Ingredients

2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt or ½ teaspoon of any other salt, including Morton kosher salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon dried thyme
4 cups butternut squash cubed; 20 ounces
¼ cup heavy cream
¼ cup Parmesan cheese grated, not shredded

Instructions

In a medium stockpot, whisk the chicken broth, kosher salt, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and dried thyme.
2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth, 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon onion powder, ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
Add the butternut squash. Bring to a boil over high heat (this should take about 5 minutes), then lower the heat to medium, cover, and cook until the butternut squash is very tender, about 8-10 minutes.
4 cups butternut squash
Turn the heat off. Use an immersion blender to puree the soup in the stockpot (see Notes below).
Turn the heat back on medium-low. Stir in the heavy cream and cook, uncovered, just until heated through, about 2 more minutes. Turn the heat off and stir in the Parmesan until fully melted.
¼ cup heavy cream, ¼ cup Parmesan cheese
Taste to see if you'd like to add salt or freshly ground pepper, then serve.

Video

Notes

Seasonings, especially salt, are guidelines. Please adjust to taste.

Blending The Soup

If you like pureed soups and make them often, I highly recommend purchasing an immersion blender. If you don't own one, working in at least two batches, carefully transfer the hot soup to your stand blender. Blend each batch until completely smooth and transfer it to a bowl. When all batches are done, return the pureed soup to the pot and proceed with the recipe.

When using a stand blender, never fill your blender past the maximum fill line. It's best to fill it no more than half full. If the lid wasn't designed to allow steam to escape, remove the centerpiece and drape a clean towel over the lid. You can hold down the lid when blending to prevent it from being pushed off, but do so without placing your hand or face over the hot steam.

Thickening the Soup

After some trial and error, I have found that a ratio of four cups (20 ounces) of squash to 2 cups of broth works well to produce thick, silky soup without any flour. The heavy cream and Parmesan further help to thicken the soup. But if you make it and are dissatisfied with how thick it is, you have two options:

Check the soup after blending and before adding the cream and Parmesan. If it seems too thin, simmer it uncovered for a few more minutes to allow more liquid to evaporate, then add the cream and Parmesan.
Add 2-4 extra tablespoons of heavy cream and/or 2 extra tablespoons of Parmesan.

Frozen squash can release a bit more water as it cooks, resulting in a slightly thinner texture. Cook it straight from frozen and simmer the soup uncovered to allow excess liquid to evaporate.

Storing Leftovers

You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. You can also freeze the cooled soup for up to three months. Thaw it overnight in the fridge before reheating.

Reheat the soup gently, covered, in the microwave, making sure it doesn't reach a boiling temperature. You can also reheat it on the stovetop over low heat, stirring frequently and avoiding boiling it.

Nutrition