This simple Butternut Squash Soup only requires 6 ingredients and has a well balanced flavor and creaminess. It's the perfect fall soup!
Ingredients
2lbbutternut squash
1 to 2.5cupsmilkstart with 1, then add more milk to get the consistency you want. I like about 2 cups, personally
3tbspdark brown sugarpacked
1/2tspred pepper flakes
1/2tspfresh grated gingeroptional
tiny pinches of cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, and/or cloves (optional, if you have them. Basically, you don't want to really know they're there when you taste the soup, but it adds dimension if you add just a small amount)
Instructions
Halve the butternut squash, remove the seeds with a spoon, then halve it again, and roast the quarters in the oven at 400 degrees F for 30 minutes, until a knife can be easily inserted. (If you have a hard time cutting up the butternut squash, take a rolling pin and hammer on the back of your knife, and it will get sliced up very easily and safely).
Let the butternut squash cool for a few minutes until you can handle it with your hands. Peel the skin off the back of the quartered butternut squash with a knife (the skin should come off very easily) to separate the flesh from the skin. Place the butternut squash into a blender along with 1 cup of milk, and blend for 1 minute on the most powerful setting you have (you want the soup to have a really smooth texture. Don’t substitute an immersion blender for the stand blender, it won’t have the power to puree the squash enough, I’ve tried). Pour the blended mixture into a saucepan over medium low heat. Taste the thickness of the soup, and add more milk if you want it thinner. Add the brown sugar, red pepper flakes, ginger if using, and spices if using, and let the heat from the red pepper flakes infuse into the soup for 5 minutes. Now it’s time to taste. Do you like the level of spiciness? If so, it’s time to work it through a fine mesh sieve to strain out the red pepper flakes and give the soup the ultimate silky smooth texture. If it’s not spicy enough, let the soup sit on the stove for a few more minutes, until you get your desired level of heat.
Use a spatula or the back of a wooden spoon to work it through the sieve. And you are left with some warm tasty soup!