My Recipe for Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

October has arrived and autumn is upon us! You know what that means, right?   It's soup season! The cooler temperatures have me craving homemade soup, so a few days ago I made my favorite - butternut squash soup!  This time, however, I did something different.  I roasted the squash in the oven beforehand, instead of cubing it and boiling it into the soup like I've done in the past.  Roasting the squash really brings out the flavor.  I will definitely be preparing it this way from now on.

I love roasted butternut squash and thus, was unable to stop myself from sneaking a few bites before scooping the flesh into the soup!  I took inspiration from a multitude of recipes and adapted this one to my liking.  The soup turned out delicious; my husband hasn't stopped talking about it since!   I was asked to share the recipe, so here it is:

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup 

Makes 6-8 hearty servings . You can half the recipe to make less, of course!

Ingredients

2 medium butternut squash 

1/4 cup butter

1 small onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

6 cups chicken broth

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

up to 1/4 tsp ground cayenne pepper (more or less depending how spicy you like it)

salt to taste 

1 pkg. cream cheese (8 oz)

Directions

• Half squash lengthwise; remove seeds and stringy pulp.  Roast cut-side down on a foil-wrapped baking pan at 400F for approx. 45 minutes, or until fully cooked and soft.  Allow to cool. Scoop the flesh out and reserve. The two squash should render six cups of flesh, more or less.
• In a large pot, melt butter over medium heat.  Add onion and garlic.  Sautee until onion is translucent. 
• Add chicken broth, reserved butternut squash, black pepper and cayenne pepper to the onion mixture. 
• Take care with the cayenne pepper!  I added 1/4 tsp because we like our soup a little spicy.  If you don't care for spicy, then just a pinch will do! 
•  Raise heat and bring to a boil.  Taste the soup for salt and adjust to your liking.  You may need to add a teaspoon or two of salt, depending on how much salt your chicken broth contains.  Continue to simmer soup for approximately 15 minutes.
• Remove pot from heat.  Break up the cream cheese and add to the soup. The cream cheese is what gives this soup its delicious, creamy texture.  DO NOT BOIL THE CREAM CHEESE! 
• Using an immersion blender, puree the soup until smooth and creamy, making sure to blend in all the cheese and butternut squash.  If you don't own an immersion blender, you can place the soup in a food processor (in batches) and pulse until smooth and creamy and return to the pot. 

If you want to make the soup look pretty, like I did,  add some sour cream to a plastic squeeze bottle and dilute it with a bit of milk.  Shake and decorate any way you like!  

If you do try this recipe at home, I would love to know how it turns out!  Your comments are always appreciated. 

 Happy Monday, friends!  Wishing you all a happy, cozy week ahead!