Every time I make butternut squash soup, I think of the golden autumn days growing up in beautiful Northern California with my dad at the stove dishing us up some nourishing homemade soup. I think my family ate this several times each fall that we finally had to move onto other recipes! This is my superfood twist on my father’s classic recipe. Pair this soup with some hearty croutons and a crunchy romaine salad.
- Butternut Squash Soup and Pumpkin Seed Crème
- 1 Tbsp. avocado oil
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, chopped
- 4 celery stalks, chopped
- 3 carrots, chopped
- 3 thyme sprigs
- 1 tsp cumin powder
- 1/2 Tbsp harvest seasonings (no salt)
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 32 oz/4 cups of low sodium vegetable broth
- 1 medium butternut squash, roasted
- 1 1/14 cup pumpkin seed crème
- 1/2 tsp salt (to taste)
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- Pumpkin Seed Crème
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 3/4 tsp salt
- juice from 1 lemon
- 1 cup raw cashews
- 1/4 cup raw hulled pumpkin seeds
- 1 cup boiling hot water
- Directions: Slice butternut squash lengthwise from top near the stem to the bottom. Place on cookie sheet, face down, for 40 minutes bake in the center of oven at 375 F. Tip: scoop out the seeds, separate them from the pulp and roast them later on for some extra nutrients!
- Turn on heat to medium, add oil to large pot, then onions and garlic and sauté in pot until tender. Add celery, carrots, thyme, cumin, onion powder, harvest seasoning and sauté for about 5 minutes.Tip 1: Add a 1/2 cup of water or broth to help sauté and add more if your veggies start to stick to the bottom of your pot. Tip 2: you can always use a no-salt seasoning blend like Mrs. Dash in place of the harvest seasoning.
- Add broth and pumpkin seed crème and bring to a gentle boil. Cover with lid
- Remove butternut squash from oven and scoop out the flesh and add chunks to a blender and pour in some of the broth and cooked vegetables. Blend until smooth.
- Ladle more broth mixture and squash into blender and continue blending the remainder of the soup until smooth.
- Serve and garnish with the pumpkin seed crème, roasted pumpkin seeds, and pistachios.
- Pumpkin Seed Crème Directions: Add all ingredients to high speed blender and blend for about 1 minute until smooth. Save 1/4 cup for garnish.
