Fresh ingredients on hand inspired a terrific tasting soup!
A busy Monday work day and no time to get groceries for dinner…so what is for dinner?
Gotta pull out whatever I have and make up something good, but simple. Okay, I have butternut squash, onions, apples…sounds like a seasonal soup. What’s in the pantry? One carton of chicken stock, some light coconut milk…hey, now we’re talking. What else? Some Chinese Five Spice, some cayenne…some fresh ginger. Hmmm, an Asian-Inspired Butternut Squash Soup, that’s the ticket!
Roast the veg and fruit, put it in the pot, add the liquid, ginger and spices, cook until the flavors fuse, whiz with the stick blender, and voilà! Throw together a little salad from more stuff in the fridge…arugula, some goat cheese, a pear, some walnuts and toss in a few cranberries with a balsamic vinaigrette drizzle. Dinner done, no sweat no hassle. And wow, did this make a good soup…tastes like it has curry in it, but it doesn’t. Just a beautiful, savory butternut, apple and onion flavor with a trace of coconut and and sweet hot spice.
Whew, thanks, I needed that!
Asian-Inspired Butternut Squash Soup
2 medium butternut squashes, split in half lengthwise, seeded
1 large onion, peeled and quartered
2 small apples, cut in half, cored, seeded
olive oil
4 cups low sodium chicken stock
1-14 oz. can light coconut milk
1/3 cup water
1/4 tsp Chinese Five Spice
2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon kosher salt plus more to taste
1 chopped scallion, white and green parts, for garnish (optional)
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cover a baking sheet with foil, then grease the foil with olive oil. Rub a tiny bit of olive oil all over the squash, apple and onion and place them cut side down on the baking sheet. Bake in the oven for 30-35 minutes or until the vegetables are tender, the skins are shriveled and pulling away from the flesh…this will take less time for the apples and the onions most likely, so check them at about 20 minutes into the cooking time and pull them out, then let the squash finish cooking.
When the vegetables and fruit are tender, remove from the oven, let them cool enough to handle, and remove the skin from the squash and apple and any charred parts of the onion if there are any, but keep the caramelized parts as it adds flavor. Put the veg and fruit and put into a soup pot and mash it up well with a potato masher. Add the chicken stock and the coconut milk, then stir in the cayenne, Chinese five spice, ginger and about 1 teaspoon of salt, and bring to a boil over medium high heat. Reduce the heat to simmer and allow the soup to cook for about 10 minutes, stirring every once in a while. After 10 minutes are up, remove the soup from the stove and puree with a stick blender, or in batches in a regular blender, until the soup is a smooth consistency. Return the soup in the pot to the stove and heat through unti it just begins to simmer again, taste for seasoning and add salt if needed. Remove from the heat and serve. A few chopped scallions on top is festive and tasty!
bits and breadcrumbs 
It reminds me of a soup I once made. It also reminds me of a soup I had at Whole Foods, they have it in the winter.
I sound sooooo delicious! I also have a food blog it is called “young foodie nation” check it out.
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Hey there cupcake, thanks for visiting! Yes, there are so many variations of butternut squash soup and most of them are great. I’ve made it with curry and without the coconut milk, too…and that’s very good. I’ll go check out your blog right now and thanks for your comments!
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Sorry I meant:
IT sounds delicious!
Not I
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Ha, ha, ha! We all have those typo moments, no worries!
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Wow, I just checked out your blog and I’m so impressed! A 10 year old foodie with a passion for cooking/baking and a blog. That is really swell!
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thank you
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This sounds wonderful with the coconut milk and five spice. Guess what I made today? Roasted butternut squash soup (onions, fresh ginger, thyme, tamari, stock made of roasted skins innards and pan deglazing). I add a little milk at the end. ‘Tis the season…
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Indeed it is the season, Sharyn, thanks for stopping by! I was feeling so seasonal tonight I needed some cranberries to go with my veggie Thanksgiving flavors and hence the salad. Your soup sounds great with the tamari and thyme. I really like the flavor of tamari and I’ll have to try that next time.
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This sounds and looks delicious. I would be proud of this soup if it came about as a result of a trip to the grocer’s. Doing it after a rummage through the fridge and pantry makes it remarkable!
Well done!
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Thank you, John! I’ll confess that I’ve had the coconut milk, broth and chinese five spice on hand for a while and kept working in my mind…what can I make with these? It just all came together last night. I seem to have chinese five spice on the brain lately and am growing to love that stuff!
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I just found your blog! Yum, any soup with five spice and coconut is one that I would love. A bit of snow going on here, so this would be perfect today!
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I just checked out your blog and you DO have some snow there, smidge! Thanks so much for stopping by and following. I think you’re right, this soup would be perfect for a snowy day, warm and comforting!
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I think I just might be making this for supper this week as well! You had me at coconut milk.
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Oh, do try it, Julie and thanks for visiting! I’m the same way about coconut milk, heh, heh!
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You’re welcome! This post hooked me in and now I’m a subscriber. I love food blogs.
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That’s great! I just subscribed to your blog, too. I love your tips and stories and am quite jealous of the country life in many ways.
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I love this mixed with the coconut milk. Almost a tropical feel to me and I like that as where I live we still have warm weather. I want to enjoy soups being the season, but I like these fresh tasting ingredients!
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Hi there! Yes, this version of butternut squash soup definitely has a bit of the tropical feel to it. It’s very fresh tasting, but tastes almost like a great curry with a tiny bit of heat and in the texture…and I love curry, so that works for me! We’re having warm weather here in Atlanta, too, right now and it was perfect with the warm temps last night. Thanks for stopping by…I’m on my way to see your blog right now!
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It sounds like you have created a real winner in this soup recipe.
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Thanks, Karen! We really loved it and I plan to make it again the next time I have butternut squash.
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