Description

A velvety smooth butternut squash soup with roasted squash, earthy sage, and crispy bacon. This quick and easy recipe is perfect for busy weeknights or last-minute entertaining, delivering deep, comforting flavor with simple ingredients.

Ingredients

Scale

1 medium butternut squash (about 2–2.5 lbs or 900g-1.1kg), peeled, seeded, and cubed into 1-inch pieces
1 large yellow onion, roughly chopped (about 1.5 cups)
3 cloves garlic, smashed
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth (960ml), low-sodium preferred
1/2 cup heavy cream (120ml)
Salt and black pepper to taste
6 slices thick-cut bacon (about 6 oz or 170g)
10–12 fresh sage leaves, plus extra for garnish

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Peel butternut squash using a Y-peeler, cut in half lengthwise, and scoop out seeds. Cut into 1-inch cubes. Toss cubes with 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet. Roast for 25-30 minutes, flipping halfway, until tender and starting to brown at the edges.
While squash roasts, cook bacon. Place strips in a cold skillet, turn heat to medium, and cook for 6-8 minutes, flipping once, until crispy. Transfer to paper towels to drain. Once cool, crumble into small pieces. Reserve 2 tablespoons of bacon fat in the pan.
In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat reserved bacon fat over medium heat. Add chopped onion and cook for 5-6 minutes until translucent and starting to brown. Add smashed garlic cloves and fresh sage leaves, cook for another minute until fragrant.
Add roasted squash cubes and 4 cups of broth to the pot. Stir, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes.
Remove pot from heat. Using an immersion blender, blend soup until completely smooth (about 60 seconds). If using a countertop blender, let soup cool for 10 minutes first, then blend in batches.
Stir in heavy cream until fully incorporated. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Ladle into bowls, top with crumbled bacon and fresh sage leaves. Drizzle extra cream on top if desired.

Notes

Don’t skip roasting the squash—it caramelizes natural sugars for deeper flavor. Add cream after blending to prevent graininess. For a vegetarian version, skip bacon and use vegetable broth with 1 tsp smoked paprika and 1/2 tsp liquid smoke. Soup can be refrigerated for up to 5 days or frozen for up to 3 months.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Category: Soup
Cuisine: American

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 serving (about 1.5
Calories: 285
Sugar: 8
Sodium: 580
Fat: 18
Saturated Fat: 7
Carbohydrates: 24
Fiber: 6
Protein: 10

Keywords: butternut squash soup, sage soup, bacon soup, fall soup, easy soup, creamy soup, roasted squash soup