Butternut Squash & Ginger Carrot Soup
Fall is here! Well, sort of. Where I am in the inland SF Bay area, it was 104F yesterday. Although I love summertime, I love fall even more. The crisp mornings, beautiful colors of leaves changing on trees, nights that cool off enough to light a cozy fire. Of course, fall also means comfort food and Thanksgiving….the biggest foodie holiday of the year…I love it, I love it all!
I made this Butternut Squash & Ginger Carrot soup today, with the thought of what is to come, in preparation and anticipation of cooler weather. It is also very light and healthy, also in…ahhhhem, in preparation for some of those same things to come. In my opinion, it is the epitome of fall in a bowl with the flavors of butternut squash and carrots, roasted until they’re caramelized. You’ll taste an underlying hint of ginger and roasted garlic. Then, top it all off with roasted squash seeds, fresh thyme and nutmeg and you’ve got it made! The texture is rich and velvety, yet it doesn’t have a drop of butter or cream in it. This is a totally healthy, flavorful, satisfying fall soup. I hope you enjoy it!
Prep Time
30 minutes
Cook Time
1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time
3 hours
Course
Soup
Cuisine
American
Servings
8 servings
Ingredients
1 Butternut Squash Chopped into 1" chunks
6 Carrots Cleaned and chopped into 1" chunks
6 Garlic Cloves In skins
1 teaspoon Fresh Ginger Grated
8 Cups Chicken Stock Homemade or Organic, if possible
EVOO
Kosher Salt
White Pepper
1 Tablespoon Fresh Thyme and a few sprigs for roasting with vegetables
1 teaspoon Fresh Nutmeg Grated
1 Yellow Onion Diced
Instructions
Preheat oven to 325F. Wash and cut carrots into 1"chunks, if they're organic, I don't even peel them, that's where a lot of the nutrients are.
Peel butternut squash, scrape out insides and set seeds aside, these make a great crunchy topping to the soup and they're delicious. Wash them in a fine mesh colander and dry in a towel. Try to separate any other squash strings that remain.
Place on a baking sheet, add EVOO and salt. Roast on top rack for 10 minutes at 325F. Remove from oven, add a little more salt and set aside for later. Increase oven temp to 400F.
While those are roasting, chop the butternut squash into 1" chunks. Try to cut it so that you have large flat surfaces to work with, it makes it easier and more safe.
Add carrots, squash, fresh sprigs of thyme, garlic cloves (still in peels), EVOO, salt and white pepper to a large bowl and toss to combine. Spread on a large baking sheet in a single layer. Roast for 1 hour at 400F.
While these are finishing up, heat a large dutch oven over medium heat. Add EVOO, diced onion and salt. Cook on a low heat for about 10 minutes until onions are translucent, but not browned. Use a microplane and grate fresh ginger into the onion mixture.
Remove roasted vegetables from oven and set aside. Squeeze garlic out of skins into the onion mixture, remove the thyme sprigs and discard. Add vegetables into pot with onions.
Add Chicken Stock and bring to a low simmer for about 10 minutes.
Using an immersion blender (or transfer to a regular blender as an alternative), blend until completely smooth. The soup will be very rich and silky smooth, if you want it thinner, you can always add a little more stock or water.
To serve, ladle into a bowl, grate some fresh nutmeg over the top, a sprinkle of fresh thyme and a few of the reserved roasted squash seeds.
