Butternut Squash Soup

Originally published on October 27, 2020

Chilly fall days call for soothing, creamy soups and this one fits the bill perfectly. When the butternut crop came ready, my Mom came to gather soup fixings: butternut squash (obviously), carrots, celery, onion, yellow potatoes, fresh thyme, and fresh sage. Farm fresh carrots and celery really make a difference in the flavor of this recipe, and don’t skimp on the fresh herbs. Trust me.

My Mom likes to roast the squash in the oven before making it into soup. But, I’m a shortcut kind of gal, so I adapted the recipe to work in my instant pot. A little bit of prep, everything in the pot, and I’m good to go.

1  large butternut squash, peeled and cubed (seeds removed)

2  potatoes, peeled and chopped

1  onion, chopped

1  stalk celery, thinly sliced

1  large carrot, chopped

1 herb bouquet - I recommend thyme and sage

1 qt. chicken broth or mushroom broth or water

For my version, I cubed all the vegetables and put them all in the instant pot with a little sprinkle of salt. I tied my herbs in a bundle and added them on top followed by the broth. You could use the soup setting on the instant pot, but none of these veggies take very long to cook, so setting it to manual for 10 minutes is sufficient.

I prefer to let my instant pot naturally come down from pressure (when I have the time), so I try to prep and start my soups way in advance. The instant pot automatically switches to warm when it is done cooking, so I can forget about it for a while and come back to it when I’m ready.

OK. Now I’m ready. Remove the bunched herbs and blend up the veggies with an immersion blender (easy way), or in batches in a blender (tricky, messy way). Add salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with….. squash seeds? microgreens? a little drizzle of cream? Let your heart guide you!