Butternut Squash Sweet Potato Soup

If there was ever the most perfect fall soup recipe, this would be it.

I mean, ok there’s is the best ever lentil soup, and everyone’s favorite broccoli cheddar soup, and a whole lot of vegetarian soup recipes to love. But this one? This one is fall all wrapped up in a bowl of cozy. It’s herby with warm cinnamon and creamy from in-season squash and sweet potatoes.

It’s the easiest to make in one pot and is ready in less than 30 minutes for the most perfect weeknight dinner. Wait, did I also mention that it’s so comforting? Ok, good, let’s get to cooking!

Ingredients + Substitutions

Easy, simple ingredients that are in-season, nutritious, and delicious! Here’s what you’ll need:

• Butternut Squash: a sweet root vegetable, this squash is dense and is what makes this soup so naturally creamy!
• Sweet Potato: kind of like butternut squash’s cousin in texture and flavor, they both compliment each other so well!
• Yellow Onion or Shallot: you can use either; a shallot provides the onion flavor with sliter sweeter and more subtleness than a yellow onion.
• White Pepper: it can be a pungent spice, but when it sneaks in as an undertone in the soup, it absolutely hits the right way, adding a hint of spice and an earthy flavor, opposed to black pepper’s heat. Not into it? Use black pepper or a pinch of red pepper flakes.
• Thyme: one of my favorite fall herbs, it’s so cozy, like a warm hug, and pairs so beautifully with butternut squash and sweet potatoes (ahem, like these sweet potato bites and squash crostini).
• Cinnamon: warm and just a subtle hint goes a long way in this soup! A pinch of nutmeg does the same, too.
• Vegetable Stock: it thins out our soup, you can add more or less depending on the consistency you like. If you don’t need this soup to be vegetarian or vegan, you can substitute chicken stock, too.

How to Make this Soup

Alright, it’s easy and made in one pot. You can rejoice in fewer dishes – YES!

Before we start, you’ll need to dice the butternut squash. It can be quite an intimidating task if you haven’t ventured there before, but you’ve got this!

I recommend dicing the squash and sweet potato into similarly sized pieces so they cook at a similar rate. However, because they will be pureed together in the end, it doesn’t much matter the size or what they look like (again, aside from the side impacting the cook rate).

Now, as all good layers of flavor, start by sauteeing the aromatics – the shallot or onion and the garlic. As always, begin adding your salt with each flavor layer, and don’t forget to taste test!

Then, in goes the squash and sweet potato. Try not to stir them too often so they get a bit caramelized, however, you will want to stir occasionally so the aromatics don’t burn.

Alternatively, you could roast the vegetables in the oven if you love a good roasted vegetable, and then continue making the soup from there (skipping the cooking of the veggies in the dutch oven).

Ok, so let the veggies cook down. Again, add a pinch of salt to layer it in! We’re also layering in the herbs and spices here, which allows them to infuse into the veggies for the most YUM.

Once caramelized, deglaze the pan with the stock, and simmer until tender. Then, it’s time to puree. I like to use an immersion hand blender for ease since the soup is already in a large Dutch oven. If you don’t have an immersion blender, carefully transfer the vegetables to a blender to puree until smooth. Add more vegetable stock as needed until you’ve reached your desired consistency.

Ways to Serve Squash Soup

You can enjoy this squash soup as you should any soup: with a loaf of crusty bread.

It’s also great with croutons and/or pepitas if you need to keep it gluten-free. You can also top it with a dollop of yogurt or sour cream for some added creaminess if you’re okay with dairy, or a drizzle of coconut cream to keep it dairy-free.

Of course, you can’t go wrong with grilled cheese or veggie sandwich.

Common Soup Questions

Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating and review in the form below. I appreciate your feedback, and it helps others, too!