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Who can resist a bowl of creamy acorn squash soup? Keep reading to learn all my tips to make this delish meal with no fuss.
Simple Acorn Squash Soup Recipe
With my family craving my roasted butternut squash soup every fall, it was a matter of time before I made a version of that recipe using acorn squash. It’s similar to butternut squash in flavor and texture, but slightly more fibrous.
This soup is buttery-sweet and savory with notes of curry and chili spices. The addition of milk makes it extra creamy, and when pureéd, it achieves a rich consistency that easily glosses the back of your spoon.
Ingredients
Acorn squash is the MVP of this recipe. For incredible flavor, you’ll use onions and celery sautéed in butter (or a neutral oil), plus spices: thyme, cumin, and paprika. For the best consistency, you’ll include milk (or coconut milk for a dairy-free soup), vegetable broth, and all-purpose flour (optional to give the soup a thicker texture).
How to Pick Out an Acorn Squash
To pick out an acorn squash that’s ripe and ready to cook, check for firm skin that’s a dark shade of green. You’ll also notice a small patch of bright orange on one side, from where the squash sat on the ground, but if the entire squash is covered in orange, it’s past its prime. The stem should also be attached and slightly withered and brown.
How to Make Acorn Squash Soup
Before checking the video recipe, here are the four steps to make this acorn squash soup:
- Cook the acorn squash
You can steam the acorn squash in the microwave or roast the acorn squash slices in the oven until tender. Scoop out the meat into a bowl and set it aside. Save time by cooking the acorn squash ahead, and refrigerate it in a container or zip bag for up to 3 days. - Sauté the aromatics and spices
In a soup pot, sauté the onion and celery in butter until the onions are translucent. Add the flour and spices and cook to toast them for about 1 minute. - Simmer the soup
Add the broth and milk and bring the mixture to a simmering boil. Add the acorn squash meat to the soup, and cook for 10 minutes. - Blend until smooth
Use an immersion or traditional blender (working in batches) to blend the soup into a velvety-smooth texture. Serve warm.
How to Puree Soup
If using an immersion blender, you'll purée the soup in the pot by inserting the blender stick directly into the pot and blending until smooth.
Using a traditional blender, you'll work in batches by filling the jar no more than halfway. Cover with the lid, open the venting top to let some of the steam escape, blend on low speed, and gradually increase speed until smooth. Transfer the puréed soup into an empty soup pot or bowl. Repeat with the remaining soup. Once all the soup is blended smoothly, combine, heat it through, and serve.
How to Serve Acorn Squash Soup
This is the kind of soup that makes you want to break off a piece of crusty bread and dip it right into the bowl. Other epic ways to enjoy this soup is serving a winter salad on the side or with grilled cheese (this will win the kids over)!
How to Store Leftovers
This acorn squash soup is good for up to 4 days in the fridge, or it can be perfectly frozen and reheated. Since many of the ingredients are blended down, the texture and flavors won't be altered.
To freeze, bring the soup to room temperature before transferring it into gallon-size zip bags. Place the bags onto a baking sheet so they freeze flat. Once frozen solid, remove the baking sheet and stack the bags in the freezer.
Easy Acorn Squash Soup
Watch how it’s made:
Ingredients
- 1 medium acorn squash, about 2 cups
- ½ onion, chopped
- 1 rib celery, chopped
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 4 teaspoons all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 1 cup milk
Instructions
Cook the acorn squash:
- Roast or microwave the acorn squash until tender. Scoop out the meat into a bowl, set it aside. If it's your first time cooking acorn squash, check the note below.
Make the soup:
- In a soup pot, melt the butter over medium-high heat, add the onion and celery, and sauté until the onions are translucent, for about 3 minutes.
- Add the flour and spices to the veggies and stir to combine. Cook to toast the spices and the flour while stirring, for about 1 minute. Add the broth and milk and bring the mixture to a simmering boil.
- Add the acorn squash meat to the soup, stir to combine, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover with a lid, and cook for 10 minutes.
Make it smooth:
- If using an immersion blender, purée the soup in the pot until smooth.
- If using a traditional blender, ladle the soup into the blender, filling it no more than halfway, place the lid, and open the venting top a little to let some of the steam escape. Blend slowly at first, gradually increasing speed, until smooth.Transfer the puréed soup into an empty soup pot or another bowl. Repeat with the remaining soup in the pot. Pour the blended soup back into the pot, stir to combine, and serve.
Notes
- Follow these steps to steam the acorn squash in the microwave.
- Follow these steps if you prefer to roast the acorn squash in the oven.
- To make this soup dairy-free, use coconut milk instead of regular milk to keep the creamy flavor and a neutral oil to sauté the veggies.
Emma says
Savory and delicious. For the vegan version I substituted 1 1/2 cup of coconut milk and 1 1/2 cup of broth, Margarine instead of butter. Thanks for sharing this tasty recipe.