Roasted Butternut Squash and Pumpkin Soup
on Oct 10, 2016, Updated Jul 09, 2024
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This Roasted Butternut Squash and Pumpkin Soup has just the right balance of savory and sweet. Silky smooth and full of fall flavor!
I had my first experience roasting a pumpkin a couple weekends ago. I don’t know what’s taken me so long. For some reason it always seemed intimidating, but it’s actually just like roasting any other kind of squash. When you buy a pumpkin to roast don’t buy the kind you carve for Halloween. Those are way too big and often have a very stringy flesh. That’s not what you want in a creamy soup like this Roasted Butternut Squash and Pumpkin Soup.
You’ll want to buy a sugar pumpkin or pie pumpkin, which is smaller and meant for eating not decorating. The roasting process is exactly the same as other winter squash. I quartered mine, scooped out the seeds, drizzle with a little olive oil, then placed it on a foil lined baking sheet to roast. I used half of the pumpkin in this soup and the other half I puréed in my food processor to use for something else. When you roast squash just like any other vegetable the flavor turns sweeter and more intense. Since this soup doesn’t have a ton of ingredients in it you want all the flavor you can get.
Unlike a lot of butternut squash soups, this one isn’t overly sweet. I don’t like when squash soups taste more like dessert than dinner. The only sweetener in the soup are the natural ones coming from the butternut squash and pumpkin. The other ingredients you’ll use are an onion, garlic, coriander and white pepper. I liked using the white pepper because the flavor was more complex and there was less heat. The coriander added a slight citrusy warm spiced flavor that went well with the sweetness of the squash.
Since I’m a texture freak I topped the soup with toasted spiced pepitas. Of course I ate half of them before they ever made it to the soup, but what did make it on was the perfect nutty crunch. I always need to add some kind of crunch to a puréed soup, otherwise I feel like I’m eating baby food. Since there isn’t any dairy or pasta in this soup you can freeze it for a cold night when you don’t have time to mess with cooking dinner. Enjoy!
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Roasted Butternut Squash and Pumpkin Soup
Ingredients
- 3 cups peeled and cubed butternut squash, about 1 small squash
- 3 cups peeled and cubed sugar pumpkin, about 1/2 of a sugar pumpkin
- Kosher salt and white pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 yellow onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced or grated
- 3 1/2 cups low sodium vegetable, or chicken broth
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, freshly grated if possible
- 1/4-1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
- Kosher salt and white pepper to taste
Spiced Pepitas
- 1/4 cup pepitas
- 1/4 teaspoon oil
- 1/8 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375° F. and line a baking sheet with foil.
- Cut the pumpkin and butternut squash into quarters and scoop out the seeds. Brush or spray the flesh of the pumpkin and squash with olive oil and sprinkle with kosher salt and white pepper.
- Place on the foil lined baking sheet and roast in the oven for approximately 45 minutes or until a knife can easily be inserted into the flesh. Remove from the oven and cool slightly then peel of the skin and cut into cubes.
- Add a tablespoon of olive oil to a large pot and heat over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot add in the diced onion and garlic and sauté for several minutes until the onion softens.
- Add in the roasted butternut squash and pumpkin and stir to combine. Add in the nutmeg, coriander, kosher salt and white pepper and stir together. Pour in the broth and bring to a boil over medium heat.
- Once the soup comes to a boil use an immersion stick blender or regular blender to purée the soup until it's smooth. Taste and add more seasoning if needed. Top the soup with some of the spiced pepitas.
Spiced Pepitas
- Heat a small non-stick skillet over medium heat.
- In a small bowl toss together the pepitas, oil and spices until coated. Add the pepitas to the skillet and toast until they start to turn light brown and become fragrant. Remove from the heat and cool.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Just made it, it was delicious!
I’m so glad you liked it Danielle, thanks for trying it out!
Hi, I made this recipe and I love it!
I omitted the Pippa’s but love the idea of them.
Do you have the nutritional breakdown of this recipe?
Can you use acorn squash instead of butternut squash?
Hi Lisa,
I haven’t tried substituting with acorn squash, but I’m sure it will work just fine. The soup may not have the sweetness that it would with the butternut because acorn squash isn’t as sweet.
I make pumpkin squash soup. I use the large can of pumpkin and 3 cups of butternut squash in mine. So yes, the canned pumpkin works just fine for me. Much easier too!!
Made this soup today. So comforting and good. Thank you :-)
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Maggie, it’s one of my fall favorites!
If I have “can of pumpkin” on hand, can I use that? And if so, how much?
Hi Jenny, I haven’t tried this with canned pumpkin puree, but I’m sure it will work fine. I would recommend using one 15 ounce can. Enjoy!
Well, you just made “Pumpkin” much more delightful with this recipe! ???? Now this is what I call a healthy yet tasty soup!
Thank you!
How comforting does this look! LOVE the spiced pepitas on top for crunch.
Thanks Krystle! Gotta have a little crunch with this creamy soup!
This looks so yummy! I’m with you… I like a little crunchy topping on my pureed soups. I love that you used white pepper. I’m a big fan, too!
White pepper is so underused, but has amazing flavor! Thanks Katie!
I love the hint of coriander and chili powder!
Thanks Maria!
Can you show us a picture of the right kind of squashes and pumpkins? there are so many to choose from at market it is confusing.