Creamy Slow Cooked Butternut Squash + Ginger Soup w/ Spicy Toasted Pepitas
Difficulty: 1/5 (5 being hardest)
Spice Level: 1/3 (3 being spiciest)
Prep & Cook Time: 20 minutes + 8 hours in slow cooker
Servings: 8
The Challenge: Butternut Squash Soup
Butternut squash soup is such a great fall and winter meal. It warms the heart and soul, and it tastes dank as hell! YUMMMM. I love having a bowl of this soup anytime. To kick up your usual butternut squash soup, though, we used a lot of fresh ginger. The ginger gives it a small kick and freshness that pairs well with the creamy earthiness of the butternut squash.
Additionally, we threw in shallots, carrots, russet potato, and some apple to round out a complex and wonderful flavor.
To continue with simple and wonderful meals, you can cook this in the slow cooker overnight, during the day while at work, or anytime. The prep is so simple - it should take just 15-20 minutes. Set it to slow cook and come back in 8 hours to a delicious soup ready for your best hand blender.
Soup as soup is pretty doggone good, but soup with spicy toasted pepitas. Now, that is WINNING. Toasting up some pepitas with spices right before serving will give this soup another level it didn't know it had.
So, let's get into it.
Butternut Squash Soup
- 1 tbl vegan butter
- 1 medium butternut squash, peeled, deseeded, roughly chopped
- 1 medium russet potato, peeled, roughly chopped
- 1 large shallot or 2 medium, diced
- 1 red apple, peeled, roughly chopped
- 1 cup carrots, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 inch fresh ginger, peeled + minced
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp sage
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp chipotle chili powder
- 2 cups vegetable broth
Spicy Pepitas
- 1/3 cup pepita seeds
- 1 tbl olive oil
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- pinch of salt + pepper
- 1/2 tsp Old Bay creole seasoning
Equipment You'll Need:
Cutting Board . Sharp Cutting Knife . Measuring Cups . Measuring Spoons . Slowcooker . Small Frying Pan . Hand Stick Blender . Serving Bowls
Before You Cook:
- Wash and cut all fresh ingredients
1. Place all the ingredients inside of a slow cooker. Turn on for 8 hours on low.
2. While that starts to cook or right before serving, heat the oil for the pepitas in a small pan for 60 seconds on medium heat. Throw in pepitas and spices. Cook for 3-4 minutes until nice and toasted.
3. To complete the soup, use a stick blender to blend the soup in the slow cooker. You can also scoop out portions and blend in an upright blender. Blend until smooth throughout the soup. It took me a couple minutes to really get it smooth with my hand blender. Serve with a handful of pepitas and enjoy!
