Days are getting cooler while the autumn leaves put on a show in all shades of yellow, orange and red. With the chilly weather settling down, I am longing for the return of comforting soups. Butternut squash makes wonderful creamy soups, yet cream-less. I very much love this recipe of roasted butternut squash soup, all silky smooth with crispy bacon chips, grilled butternut seeds and grissini. Cozy and delicious!
I purposefully kept the ingredients list to a minimum to let the butternut squash flavor shine through. The secret to enhance butternut rich flavor is to roast it first in the oven, with a drizzle of olive oil (if you are into roasted veggies like me, try also this recipe of Roasted Purple Cauliflower and Sweet Potatoe). All you need then is sauteed shallots, vegetable broth, a pinch of nutmeg and a good blender. I recommend to transfer the squash in two portions to get a creamier soup.
I originally planned to roast chestnut chunks to complement the lightly sweet flavor of butternut squash. But chestnuts are not yet available, so I went for crispy bacon instead. Not as healthy option I admit, but I eventually wouldn’t change anything to the recipe! Honestly, just taste how bacon chips blend deliciously in that smooth butternut squash soup and you will surely agree with me.
Make sure you don’t throw away your butternut squash seeds! Roast them in the oven with a dash of olive oil and salt, then sprinkle them on your soup as garnishes – provided you don’t snack on them all before that!
The final touch to this simple and flavorful soup is grissini. These pencil-sized Italian breadsticks are a lovely crunchy accompaniment for a soup in place of bread. Here is my Express Gluten Free Chickpea & Curry Breadsticks recipe, quick and easy to make!
- 1 butternut squash, cut in halves, seeds removed
- 2 shallots
- 250 ml vegetable stock (gluten free)
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- Olive oil
- Bacon
- Salt & pepper to taste
- Preheat the oven to 220 degrees. Place the squash cut on a parchment paper, sides up. Drizzle with olive oil. Roast for about 30 minuts until fork tender.
- Scoop the squash out into a large bowl. Add it to a blender, working in two batches. Puree with the vegetable stock until smooth. .
- Heat the olive oil and sauté the shallots about 5 minutes. Add to the bowl of the blender with the butternut squash and puree until the soup is smooth. Add the nutmeg and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Clean the butternut squash seeds and spread them on a roasting pan in a single layer. Drizzle olive oil and toss them a bit to coat them. Sprinkle salt and bake for about 15 minutes until the seeds begin to brown.
- Place the bacon on parchment paper in a baking pan. Bake for about 15 minutes until it gets crisp. Cut into small chips.
- Sprinkle the crispy bacon chips and roasted seeds on the soup before serving.
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