Butternut Squash Soup
When fall time arrives I definitely become that fall comfort food girl. Give me all the pumpkin and squash! But as we all know, many times these fun fall foods can be high in fat and calories. In this recipe, I use vegetable stock and unsweetened, lite coconut milk for a healthier version of this fall favorite.
Ingredients:
16 oz Vegetable Stock
4 cloves Garlic, Minced
1 Whole Carrot, Chopped
1 Medium Granny Smith Apple, Chopped
1 Medium (approx 3-4 pounds) Butternut Squash, Diced
1 Yellow Onion, Chopped
½ tsp Himalayan Pink Salt
¼ tsp Fresh Ground Black Pepper
⅛ tsp Cayenne Pepper
Pinch of Cinnamon & Nutmeg
8 oz Canned Unsweetened Lite Coconut Milk
Slow Cooker Instructions:
In a slow cooker, add vegetable stock, garlic, carrot, apple, squash, onion, salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg and combine.
Cook 6-8 hours on low, or 3-4 hours on high until squash is completely tender and mashes easily with a fork.
Stir in coconut milk.
Blend with an immersion blender or regular blender.
Season with salt, pepper and cayenne pepper as needed and serve.
Stovetop Instructions:
In a soup pot, sauté your onion and garlic approximately 5 minutes.
Add the remaining ingredients, except the coconut milk, and toss to combine.
Cook on medium-high until mixture reaches a simmer.
Cover and reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 20-30 minutes until vegetables are tender and mash easily with a fork.
Stir in coconut milk.
Again, you can blend with an immersion blender or regular blender.
Season with additional salt, pepper and cayenne pepper as needed and serve.
Notes:
Chicken stock can be used in place of vegetable stock.
I like to add sliced, fresh mushrooms to this recipe to “beef” it up a little.
I personally do not blend this recipe as I like my soup a little more “chunky”. Therefore I just mash the squash in the slow cooker or pot, stir in coconut milk after, and serve.
Keep in mind, if you do blend this recipe, you will want to do so in batches due to the soup being hot. You can also prepare this recipe ahead of time, let it cool, then blend it.
