Roasted Butternut Squash and Bacon Soup
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This easy roasted butternut squash soup is so silky smooth, so dreamy, and so creamy! The secret is roasting the butternut squash first!
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Have made this recipe 3x in the past 3 weeks! Everyone LOVES it. From my parents, to my 5 year old and 1 year old nieces. The goat cheese is amazing with it, it’s so savory and satisfying. It also couldn’t be any easier to make! Thank you for such an incredibly easy and delicious recipe, this is a staple in our house now!
Why you’ll love this Roasted Butternut Squash Soup
- Dreamiest butternut squash soup. With its silky smooth texture, this is the only recipe you will need this fall (and winter) season for years to come.
- Smoky goodness. The secret to the recipe is roasting the butternut squash with bacon, onion, bell pepper, and garlic first. That way, you have that smoky, garlicky-bacon goodness built right into the soup.
- The garnishes are simply the best. A sprinkle of crumbled, crispy bacon, goat cheese, and fresh chives simply takes this soup to the next level. It’s truly just so much coziness in a single bowl.
How to make Roasted Butternut Squash Soup
- Prep the butternut squash. Place the butternut squash, onion, bell pepper, and bacon on a greased baking sheet. Stir in the olive oil, garlic, salt, and peper, tossing until evenly coated. Pro tip: for a quick weeknight shortcut, use pre-cut butternut squash.
- Roast the butternut squash. Spread out the vegetables in a single layer, avoiding any overlap. Bake at 400°F for 25-30 minutes, or until the squash is fork-tender, stirring or flipping halfway through.
- Cook the bacon. Dice the raw bacon slices into small pieces and add to a hot Dutch oven over medium heat. Spread the bacon out in a single layer and cook, stirring often, until brown and crispy, about 6-8 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.
- Blend. Stir in the roasted butternut squash and thyme in the leftover bacon grease until fragrant. Then stir in the chicken stock, pureeing with an immersion blender until smooth and creamy.
- Simmer. Reduce the heat to a simmer until thickened, about 5-10 minutes. Pro tip: if the soup is too thick, add a small splash of chicken stock.
- Serve. Serve warm, ladled into bowls and garnished with the crispy bacon, crumbled goat cheese, chopped fresh chives, or any other garnishes (see below) as desired.
Garnishes to add
- Crunchy: croutons, crumbled bacon, chopped nuts, or pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
- Creamy: dollop of sour cream or Greek yogurt, drizzle of heavy cream, or swirl of full-fat coconut milk
- Herbs: chopped fresh chives, green onions, cilantro, or parsley
- Fruit: pomegranate seeds
- Cheese: crumbled goat cheese, crumbled blue cheese, or freshly grated Parmesan
what to serve with butternut squash soup
Tools For This Recipe
Roasted Butternut Squash and Bacon Soup: Frequently Asked Questions
Can I substitute sweet potatoes for the butternut squash?
Absolutely! You can substitute about 3 pounds sweet potatoes.
How can I make this vegetarian?
You can omit the bacon and substitute vegetable stock for the chicken stock.
What if I don’t have an immersion blender?
A countertop blender (such as a Vitamix or Blendtec) or food processor should do the trick! When using a countertop blender, cool the soup slightly and blend in batches.
What toppings can I add?
Toasted pumpkin seeds, fried sage leaves, sour cream (or Greek yogurt), heavy cream, or blue cheese crumbles are all great options!
Is butternut squash soup freezer-friendly?
Yes! You can freeze the leftovers without the garnishes in individual freezer bags, thawing overnight and gently reheating on the stovetop, adding fresh garnishes just before serving.
Can I make butternut squash soup in the Instant Pot?
Absolutely! Click here for a favorited Instant Pot version.
Roasted Butternut Squash and Bacon Soup
This easy roasted butternut squash soup is so silky smooth, so dreamy, and so creamy! The secret is roasting the butternut squash first!
Video
Ingredients
- 4 slices bacon, diced
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 ½ cups chicken stock, or more, to taste
- ¼ cup crumbled goat cheese
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
for the roasted butternut squash
- 1 butternut squash, about 3 pounds, peeled, seeded and cut in 1-inch chunks
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 4 slices bacon, diced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Heat a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add bacon and cook until brown and crispy, about 6-8 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.
- Add the roasted butternut squash and thyme, and cook, stirring occasionally, until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Stir in chicken stock and puree with an immersion blender.
- Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until slightly thickened, about 5-10 minutes. If the soup is too thick, add more chicken stock as needed until desired consistency is reached.
- Serve immediately, garnished with bacon, goat cheese and chives, if desired.
for the roasted butternut squash
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly oil a baking sheet or coat with nonstick spray.
- Place butternut squash, onion, bell pepper and bacon in a single layer onto the prepared baking sheet. Add olive oil and garlic; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Gently toss to combine.
- Place into oven and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until butternut squash is tender, stirring at halftime.*
Equipment
Notes
- Grab pre-cut squash. To cut down on prep time even more, use pre-cut butternut squash or sweet potatoes.
- Roast the butternut squash. Roasting the butternut squash beforehand will add more rich and caramelized flavors all around.
- Use good-quality stock. The better quality your stock, the better your soup. Many brands love to pack in the salt so always opt for unsalted or a lower-sodium variety. Homemade stock is even better.
- Blending is key. With the help of an immersion blender or a countertop blender, the soup will yield an even creamier, smoother consistency.
- Add garnishes. Garnishes are always optional but a fresh sprinkle of chives or some crispy bacon will certainly take your soup to the next level, adding more flavor, texture and contrast.
- Mix it up. Use sweet potato in place of butternut squash, or a blend of both.
- Freeze without the garnishes. Butternut squash soup can keep in the freezer for up to 3 months, freezing in single-serving sizes (for easy thawing) and reheating gently on the stovetop or in the microwave.
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @damn_delicious on Instagram and hashtag it #damndelicious!
Can I use frozen squash pre cut thaw and then roast at all?
Yes, of course, but I find that fresh squash is truly best!
By far the BEST butternut squash soup I’ve ever had! I roasted a couple carrots and a sweet potato with it. Truly delicious! Thank you so much for sharing. I’ve loved every recipe I’ve ever tried from your site.
It’s such a good one. We’re happy you enjoyed it!
It is just Damn Delicious!
I’ve had Weight loss surgery and am always looking for low carb dinner ideas, Made this one for dinner tonight and it was delicious everybody loved it even the picky eaters, definitely want to make again
That’s awesome!
Made this last Sunday and I absolutely loved it! Definitely will become a new staple at our house. I added just a little bit of milk at the end to thin it out slightly. Sharing your link on my “Friday Favorites” blog post this week!
http://www.peonypincher.com
Thank you Krista! We appreciate the share!!
I made this tonight, after reading the comments on here, I added an apple and one chopped, seeded jalapeño to the roasting veggies, along with a dash of cinnamon, ginger, and turmeric, then blended. This soup is so filling, new favorite!
The jalapeño added just the right amount of heat to the soup, and I would encourage anyone to try it !
This is the best soup ever! I made it whole30 and my husband and I loved it. Thanks for the recipe!!
Hi, I’m making this now and your directions are confusing.
Under ingredients, it should read “8 slices of bacon – 4 roasted with the butternut squash and 4 for garnish” – I wasn’t sure if I was putting raw bacon in the oven with the squash.
Then you say put all the ingredients on the pan evenly, but add the garlic and olive oil to toss. This should be done before the veggies go on the cooking sheet, right?
It probably would be better to list all the ingredients, including the seasonings, and then break it down into 3 sections: Ingredients, For the Soup, and Toppings
Hope this helps!
Yes, you are putting raw bacon in the oven with the squash – why dirty another pan? The addition of olive oil and garlic should not be done before the veggies go on the baking sheet. You want to coat the vegetables with olive oil. Does that make sense?
I just made this for first time. Felt it needed a little “something” flavor-wise when done, so added the following:
1 T butter
2 T half & half
1/4 tsp ginger
1 & 1/2 tsp brown sugar
1/8 tsp ground cloves
*all above were approximate
These additions made it so much more flavorful. SO yummy!
I made this about a month ago and it was absolutely delicious but I had some issues with the texture. I think it was just because my immersion blender wasn’t strong enough so I’m going to try it again with my blender. I also wanted to ask about the 3lb squash vs 3lb of cut up squash because I’m still confused by it. If I were to go to the store and purchase 3lbs of squash already prepared would I use the whole amount? Obviously the more squash I use the thicker it will be. When you make this soup yourself, is it a fairly thick soup as well?
The recipe calls for 3 lb of butternut squash. If you purchase 3 lb precut squash, you may want to use less. You can also make the soup as thick or as thin as you prefer – it all depends on personal preference.
Would I be able to make this then transfer to a crockpot to keep warm for an hour or so before serving?
Yes, you should be able to. But as always, please use your best judgement when making modifications.
Why did I wait so long to try this I don’t know. Flavor is amazing. Your recipe is spot on!!
YUM! This soup looks so good – comforting and delicious ♥
Sounds so delicious! Do you think I could use frozen butternut squash?
I recommend using fresh!
Another delicious recipe! I made this tonight and will be making it again and again. Thanks for always being my go-to when I want to try something new.
Tried this recipe this weekend for a cold and rainy footbal sunday! It was SOO easy and such a hit! I ended up need two sheet pans for the roasting part in the beginning but that could just be from overestimating all of my ingredients. I also let the squash/pepper/onion/ bacon mixture steep in the chicken broth for about 20 minutes post-removing from the oven and pre-blending. I added about a 1/4 cup of cream to the mix while blending with my immersion blender. The other minor tweaks I made were all in relation to added spice (nutmeg) and things along those lines! All in all this was such a great recipe! I have been really relying on your recipes lately because you just cannot go wrong with whatever dish you pick to make!
is there a good substitute for red pepper? i completely blanked in picking one up and I’m ready to make it tonight!
You can omit if you need to!
I made this the other day on a whim because it was a cold and rainy night. It was absolutely delicious!! My boyfriend helped himself to 3 bowls, and I had a big old bowl for myself. I made it exactly as the directions called for, even down to the toppings you used. It was perfect! ate it for lunch the next day and it was still amazing! Thank you! this is going to be a new staple in my house!
It’s Thanksgiving here in Canada and I just made this soup as a starter. Delicious! I think my onion bits didn’t cook all the way when roasting so it left the soup with a strong aftertaste. To tone it down I added pure maple syrup. Did the trick. Next time I’ll dice them smaller. And there will be a next time! Thanks for another great recipe.
This soup is “Damn Delicious”! My husband was hesitant initially, but has requested I make it again.