Fall – the beginning of the most wonderful season of year: Soup Season! From now until the warm days of Spring pop up, our family will be enjoying plenty of delicious cold weather soups made with nourishing bone broth to chase the chill of cold away.
The first soup I made to celebrate? Roasted Garlic and Butternut Squash Soup – a creamy blend of roasted garlic, butternut squash finished with browned butter and a touch of lemongrass. The perfect combination of homey and sophisticated all tied up in one nutritious package.
Isn’t butternut the perfect hard squash? It’s got that slightly sweet aroma when you cut it open, beautiful orange flesh, a smooth taste and texture that appeals to a wide variety of palates, and for the lazy among us (namely me) that awesome seedless length that makes whipping up a amazing Fall dish a total cinch.
I cut the bottom seed-filled part of the squash off and store it in the fridge for when I have a bit more time, and get to cooking with the top – what a time-saver!
You might be a bit shocked to see two whole bulbs of garlic being used, but don’t you worry – each bowl has a very smooth garlic flavor that doesn’t hang around for days. And anyhow – don’t we need a bit of those healing garlic benefits this time of year?
Roasted garlic is so easy to make, and it transforms every dish it’s added to – and here with brown butter and lemongrass, it gives this soup a wonderful richness and depth of flavor!
All these wonderful flavors come together with a silky, homemade chicken stock to make a nourishing meal that you will crave for as long as the cold weather is here.
Roasted Garlic and Butternut Squash Soup
Ingredients:
- 3 lb Butternut Squash, peeled and cut into 1″ cubes
- 1 lb Carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2″ pieces
- 2 quarts Homemade Chicken Stock
- 2 Bay Leaves
- 2 bulbs Roasted Garlic,
- 1 t. dried, ground Lemongrass
- 3 T. Butter
- Salt, to taste
- 1/3 c. Sunflower Seeds (optional)
Equipment:
- Large Stockpot (where to buy)
- Small Saucepan (where to buy)
Instructions:
- Put the squash, carrots, chicken stock and bay leaves in a large stockpot and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Simmer until carrots and squash are tender. Turn off the heat and remove the bay leaves. Meanwhile, peel the garlic cloves.
- Add the peeled garlic to the cooked carrots and squash, along with the lemongrass. Working in batches, puree the soup in a blender until completely smooth, using a towel to cover the air hole on the lid to let steam escape. Alternately, use an immersion blender. Wipe down the stockpot and put the pureed soup back in.
- Put the butter in a small saucepan and heat on medium; it will bubble and brown over the course of a few minutes. Once it smells toasty and is a nice golden caramel color, pull it off the heat and stir in to the soup. Keep the butter pan on the heat and add the sunflower seeds, stirring occasionally until they are fragrant and toasted.
- Season the soup to taste with salt. Serve garnished with a sprinkling of sunflower seeds. Makes 8-10 servings.
Enjoy!
Jennifer is a stay-at-home, homeschooling mom of four. She is an avid cook, health enthusiast, and lover of all things homemade! At Sweet Plantains she shares original recipes, homeschooling tips, parenting thoughts, and anything else that strikes her fancy. In her spare time she enjoys experimenting in the kitchen, reading nutrition books, and being barefoot outdoors with her little ones! She blogs at www.sweetplantains.blogspot.com. Check it out!
