I love fall! Well, at least the attempt at fall that southern California is giving me. But, I’ll take anything because I’m ready for pumpkins, squash, apples….I’ve been doing this blogging thing for almost a year and as I’ve mentioned before, my goal is to utilize local organic ingredients when possible. So I apologize in advance if you’re already over it all!
I’m trying to be creative and think outside the box, so I used a variety of winter squashes in this soup. It would really work with any winter squash or combination of them, but I really liked the variety I used here. I wanted to add a little different twist, I’ve seen a lot of sage and thyme lately, and although I love both, I thought I’d mix it up by paring these spices with cilantro. It was a risk, but it totally panned out. If you don’t like cilantro, then feel free to leave it out, but if you do, this is the soup for you! We loved it! The variety of flavors really made it a tasty meal. It’s so savory and a perfect winter comfort food. We ate it for a few days and it was just as good as leftovers as it was fresh. I even made a fall sandwich to eat it with the next day, check out my Smoky Tempeh, Apple and Arugula Sandwich!
My favorite thing about making this soup was that I got to test out the “soup” function on my new Vitamix. And wow, was it amazing!! Apparently the speed by which the function purees the ingredients creates a heat that actually makes this soup hot when its done. So you can literally pour it straight from the blender into your bowl. I was shocked at the steam coming from it! And we are talking hot, not just warm, but hot enough that you had to blow on each spoonful before you ate it. This machine continues to amaze me…you can definitely use a regular blender for this, you just need to to heat the soup after its pureed. But if you’ve been on the fence about buying a Vitamix, I’d definitely do it and if you can, get one with the preset functions! So useful! I use mine multiple times a day and can honestly say that the functions have made my life as a mom easier.
The Ultimate Creamy Winter Squash Soup
Ingredients:
- 1 ½ cups delicata squash
- 2 cups Tahitian Squash
- 2 cups butternut squash
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 zucchini
- 1 cup sweet onion
- 6 sage sprigs
- 6 thyme sprigs
- coconut oil for brushing squash for roasting (optional)
- Himalayan pink salt to taste
- ½ cup cilantro (loosely packed)
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- ½ cup walnuts (soaked overnight if not using a high speed blender)
- ½ cup raw cashews (soaked overnight if not using a high speed blender)
- 4 cups veggie broth
- pumpkin seeds for garnish (optional)
note: You can use any combination of winter squashes you like, however I enjoyed the varying sweetness of the three I used, but any would work as long as you use the same total amount. The coconut oil is optional but adds a great hint of coconut flavor without a real big coconut taste. If you happen to have my Cashew Walnut Cream Sauce already made, which I often do, you can also put in a cup of that instead of the walnuts and cashews. It’s essentially the same thing.
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400. Wash and prepare squash. I scooped out seeds, peeled and cut into large pieces before roasting, but you can also roast whole and prep after. If you are using delicata squash, the skin can be eaten. The Tahitian and butternut needs to be peeled. Using a vegetable peeler works great. Make sure to cut in even sized pieces for even cooking. Peel the garlic. Place squash and garlic on a parchment lined cookie sheet.
If using coconut oil, brush each squash lightly. Place thyme and sage sprigs over squash making sure to spread out evenly. Lightly sprinkle with salt. Bake for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, wash and cut zucchini and onion. Once 20 minutes is done, place zucchini and onion on the cookie sheet with the squash and garlic. Bake another 25 minutes. If your pieces aren’t uniform then take out any pieces that are soft when tested with a fork and continue to bake until all pieces are soft.
Once done and cooled a bit, place everything except sage and thyme in a blender (high speed works best) along with the rest of the ingredients. Then remove the thyme and sage leaves from the stems and add them to the blender. Blend on “soup” setting or on high speed until smooth. If using the “soup” setting, when it is done, the soup will be hot and ready to eat. If not, then you may need to warm on the stove depending on how much you let the veggies cool after roasting.
Garnish with pumpkin seeds if desired. Pairs well with my Smoky Tempeh, Apple and Arugula Sandwich!
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