Butternut Squash Soup

Butternut Squash Soup made in the crockpot, Instant Pot, or stovetop is the best creamy, easy and healthy soup made with roasted butternut squash and apple. This fall inspired homemade soup recipe is full of flavor and wholesome ingredients that just make you feel good. My version of roasted butternut squash soup is super creamy but the recipe is dairy free. 

If you love fall inspired soups, be sure to check out my Pumpkin Curry Soup and Hungarian Mushroom Soup recipes as well!

Why this recipe works:

Homemade soup recipes are the best, and this one is perfect for fall!

I had picked up a butternut squash at the farmers market, roasted it, and then had no idea what I was going to do with it. I ended up using half for butternut squash ravioli made with homemade pasta and half for this soup.

• Only six ingredients are needed to make this roasted butternut soup.
• You can swap the chicken broth with vegetable stock to make this recipe vegetarian and vegan.
• Instructions below on how to make it on the stove, in the slow cooker, or in the Instant Pot.

Ingredients needed:

• olive oil
• onion
• garlic
• Honeycrisp apple – other varieties will work but this is my favorite
• chicken broth
• roasted butternut squash

How to make healthy butternut squash soup:

Prior to cooking the soup, you will roast the butternut squash, mash it, and measure out 2 cups. The remaining amount can be used in other recipes or served alone as a side dish.

1. You’ll start by heating the oil where you will then saute the onion. Once browned you’ll add the apple and garlic.
2. The chicken broth and mashed roasted squash are added to the pot. Bring the soup to a boil and then reduce heat to low to simmer.
3. Blend with an immersion blender until creamy smooth. I used to transfer my hot soups like this one to my blender, but now that I have an immersion blender, I think that works a million times better!
4. Serve and enjoy! 

Herb and spice recommendations:

My recipe is simple. Can you believe I don’t add any except for salt and pepper? The honeycrisp apple, combined with my homemade chicken broth, gave my soup all the flavor it needed.

If you want to kick the flavor up a notch, here are some ideas of the spices you can add:

• Sage – This herb goes hand and hand with butternut squash. I’ve used sage in other butternut squash recipes including my Pressure Cooker Butternut Squash with Sage Brown Butter and my Butternut Squash Cake. I personally think the best way to use sage is to fry fresh sage leaves in butter.
• Cayenne Pepper – A little goes a long way. If you want to add a little spice to your soup, a dash of cayenne pepper will do the trick.
• Cinnamon and Nutmeg – What better way to bring out the fall flavors?

Recipe tips and substitutions:

• This butternut soup recipe is extremely easy. Yes, roasting the squash is time consuming, but no one can deny that it’s easy. If you’d like, you can roast a ton of winter squash at the beginning of the season and store it in the freezer so that you always have it at the ready.
• You can choose to make my butternut squash soup on the stovetop in a dutch oven, in your crockpot, or in the Instant Pot.
• This healthy and comforting recipe is perfectly delicious all on its own. I, however, love to have something crunchy and/or cheesy with my soups. Served up hot with a grilled cheese, we had a hearty and savory fall dinner!
• Substitutions: Any kind of winter squash like pumpkin, carnival, buttercup, etc. will work in place of the butternut squash. Likewise, any kind of apple will work in this recipe however Honeycrisps are sweet and have great flavor. Vegetable broth can be used in place of chicken broth.

Related recipes:

Everyone loves a delicious homemade soup. Especially during the fall when the weather starts to change. Here are some of my favorite recommendations:

• Winter Minestrone Soup
• Leftover Turkey Soup
• Creamy Chicken Soup
• Instant Pot Potato Leek Soup
• Italian Wedding Soup
• Instant Pot Split Pea Soup
• Chicken Tortilla Soup

This post was originally created in October 2015 and has been updated with updated photos, recipe tips, and helpful information. Don’t worry – I didn’t change the recipe!