America's Test Kitchen LogoCook's Country LogoCook's Illustrated LogoAmerica's Test Kitchen LogoCook's Country LogoCook's Illustrated Logo
All About Winter Squash
Recipe
1 hr

Silky Butternut Squash Soup

(138)
88 Comments
Loading...
Silky Butternut Squash Soup
Author: Raquel Pelzel

Recipe By Raquel Pelzel

Published on September 12, 2024

The secret to great butternut squash soup is to sauté the seeds and fibers to build flavor, add water, then steam the flesh over the flavorful liquid.

Time

1 hr

Yield

4 to 6 servings

Why This Recipe Works

In our butternut squash soup recipe, we got the most flavor out of our squash by sautéing shallots and butter with the reserved squash seeds and fibers, simmering the mixture in water, and then using the liquid to steam the unpeeled squash (thereby avoiding the difficult task of peeling raw squash). To complete our butternut squash soup recipe, we peeled the squash when cooled, then pureed it with the reserved steaming liquid for a perfectly smooth texture.

Ingredients

Silky Butternut Squash Soup

4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter
2 medium shallots, minced (about 4 tablespoons)
3 pounds butternut squash (about 1 large), unpeeled, squash halved lengthwise, seeds and stringy fibers scraped with spoon and reserved (about ¼ cup), and each half cut into quarters
6 cups water
1½ teaspoon table salt
½ cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon dark brown sugar

Cinnamon-Sugar Croutons

4 slices white sandwich bread, cut into ½-inch cubes with crusts removed
2 tablespoons melted butter
4 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Instructions

Cook along with these step-by-step instructions

step 1 imagestep 2 imagestep 3 imagestep 4 image

    Soup

  1. Heat butter in large Dutch oven over medium-low heat until foaming; add shallots and cook, stirring frequently, until softened and translucent, about 3 minutes. Add squash scrapings and seeds and cook, stirring occasionally, until fragrant and butter turns saffron color, about 4 minutes. Add 6 cups water and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt to Dutch oven and bring to boil over high heat; reduce heat to medium-low, place squash cut-side down in steamer basket, and lower basket into pot. Cover and steam until squash is completely tender, about 30 minutes. Off heat, use tongs to transfer squash to rimmed baking sheet; reserve steaming liquid. When cool enough to handle, use large spoon to scrape flesh from skin into medium bowl; discard skin.
    Recipe Tip
    If you don’t own a folding steamer basket, a pasta pot with a removable pasta insert works well.
  2. Pour reserved steaming liquid through mesh strainer into second bowl; discard solids in strainer. Rinse and dry Dutch oven.
  3. In blender, puree squash and reserved liquid in batches, pulsing on low until smooth. Transfer puree to Dutch oven; stir in cream and brown sugar and heat over medium-low heat until hot. Add salt to taste; serve immediately.
    Recipe Tip
    Some nice garnishes for the soup are freshly grated nutmeg, a drizzle of balsamic vinegar, a sprinkle of paprika, or Buttered Cinnamon-Sugar Croutons.

    4. Croutons

  4. Adjust oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Toss the bread cubes with melted butter in a medium bowl. In a small bowl, combine cinnamon and sugar; sprinkle over the bread cubes and toss to combine.
  5. Spread the bread cubes in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake until crisp, 8 to 10 minutes (The croutons can be stored in an airtight container for several days.) Sprinkle over soup just before serving.

Ask ATK

Have a Question?

We’d love to hear from you! Drop us a message anytime and we’ll get back to you. We’re here to help!

Recipe FAQs

My Rating

Up Next

Spaghetti Squash Salad with Tomatoes and Pecorino
Recipe2 hr

Spaghetti Squash Salad with Tomatoes and Pecorino

Silky Butternut Squash Soup

Recipe By Raquel Pelzel

Published on September 12, 2024

Time

1 hr

Yield

4 to 6 servings

Silky Butternut Squash Soup

Ingredients

Silky Butternut Squash Soup

4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter2 medium shallots, minced (about 4 tablespoons)3 pounds butternut squash (about 1 large), unpeeled, squash halved lengthwise, seeds and stringy fibers scraped with spoon and reserved (about ¼ cup), and each half cut into quarters6 cups water1½ teaspoon table salt½ cup heavy cream1 teaspoon dark brown sugar

Cinnamon-Sugar Croutons

4 slices white sandwich bread, cut into ½-inch cubes with crusts removed2 tablespoons melted butter4 teaspoons sugar1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Instructions

    Soup

  1. Heat butter in large Dutch oven over medium-low heat until foaming; add shallots and cook, stirring frequently, until softened and translucent, about 3 minutes. Add squash scrapings and seeds and cook, stirring occasionally, until fragrant and butter turns saffron color, about 4 minutes. Add 6 cups water and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt to Dutch oven and bring to boil over high heat; reduce heat to medium-low, place squash cut-side down in steamer basket, and lower basket into pot. Cover and steam until squash is completely tender, about 30 minutes. Off heat, use tongs to transfer squash to rimmed baking sheet; reserve steaming liquid. When cool enough to handle, use large spoon to scrape flesh from skin into medium bowl; discard skin.
    Recipe Tip
    If you don’t own a folding steamer basket, a pasta pot with a removable pasta insert works well.
  2. Pour reserved steaming liquid through mesh strainer into second bowl; discard solids in strainer. Rinse and dry Dutch oven.
  3. In blender, puree squash and reserved liquid in batches, pulsing on low until smooth. Transfer puree to Dutch oven; stir in cream and brown sugar and heat over medium-low heat until hot. Add salt to taste; serve immediately.
    Recipe Tip
    Some nice garnishes for the soup are freshly grated nutmeg, a drizzle of balsamic vinegar, a sprinkle of paprika, or Buttered Cinnamon-Sugar Croutons.

    4. Croutons

  4. Adjust oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Toss the bread cubes with melted butter in a medium bowl. In a small bowl, combine cinnamon and sugar; sprinkle over the bread cubes and toss to combine.
  5. Spread the bread cubes in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake until crisp, 8 to 10 minutes (The croutons can be stored in an airtight container for several days.) Sprinkle over soup just before serving.
This is a members' feature.