A healthy and hearty butternut squash soup recipe that combines roasted butternut squash with sweet apples, fennel, onion, garlic, and good stock. Deliciously creamy (without any cream) and perfect for cozy fall/winter dinners. Gluten free and vegan friendly.

Butternut Squash, Apple and Fennel Soup | Fork Knife Swoon
Butternut Squash, Apple and Fennel Soup | Fork Knife Swoon
Butternut Squash, Apple and Fennel Soup | Fork Knife Swoon

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Apple and Fennel

In the early morning, the fog lays thick and low across empty fields. Graceful, draped spiderwebs, dew-speckled and ethereal, glow against a backdrop of dark earth and deeply-green, wild grasses that have sprouted amongst the skeletal remains of corn. The market season is coming to a close.

It was this time last year that we left Georgia for good. The monotony of evergreen pines thinned as we headed north, our route, along scenic two-lane highways and back roads, increasingly dominated by vast fields of cotton. We drove through a handful of small towns, down dilapidated main streets, with dusty store-fronts and chipped and faded signs above boarded-up windows. We passed cheerful, pastel-painted Victorians with big porches and bright flower pots hanging from the eaves. Sagging trailers with lazy dogs out front, and the best hole-in-the-wall barbecue joints you can find. But mostly it was open country. Dense swaths of tall trees would suddenly open up to cotton. Rows and rows of scrubby, bare plants dotted with white, puffy bolls traced the edges of the road.

I’d forgotten that landscape. Months later, when the frozen, grey ground finally burst alive again, that familiar, bracing humidity, that lush wildness that I had come to know of the South, returned. With each month, more forcefully so. The land hummed loudly, constantly, with the nagging din of insects and energetic, seemingly unstoppable growth. This untamed Southern land – of red dirt and swampy woods, thick with walls of knotted brush beneath shadowy pines – remains perpetually inclined to swallow us back into those deeply-rooted, tangled depths.

And then, a pause. The driving fury of those middle months subsided, the vibrancy and color receding, leaving in its wake only a quiet, muted landscape; a cyclical respite framed in hushed tones of grey and brown. The land rests. The cotton waits again on naked, dry branches, ready to be picked, and I can’t believe it’s been another year.

Butternut Squash, Apple and Fennel Soup | Fork Knife Swoon

Why you’ll love this cozy butternut squash soup

With the evening dusk creeping in ever earlier, I’m happiest in our cozy kitchen, fussing over big pots of simmering stock and roasted vegetables. Windy, cold days beg for hearty, comforting dishes, and this butternut squash soup with apple and fennel has been one of my favorites as of late.

The recipe combines roasted butternut squash with sweet apples, fennel, onion, garlic, herbs, stock, and a splash of walnut oil for a delicious, savory soup that stands up nicely to this chilly weather.

This soup also happens to be vegan and gluten-free – taking advantage of the naturally creamy texture and body that the roasted squash provides. But you wouldn’t know it by taste. I didn’t set out to make the recipe super healthy per sé, but it does makes for a nice balance against the plethora of baked goods I’ve found myself (willingly) surrounded by lately. Happy cooking!!

Butternut Squash, Apple and Fennel Soup | Fork Knife Swoon

Butternut squash soup ingredients:

This rustic roasted butternut squash soup with apple and fennel is simple and healthy, yet full of flavor and made with mostly pantry ingredients. Here’s what you need to make it:

  • olive and walnut oil
  • onion and garlic
  • fennel
  • apple
  • butternut squash
  • aromatic herbs
  • vegetable stock
  • salt and pepper

Find all the exact measurements and recipe instructions below.

Butternut Squash, Apple and Fennel Soup | Fork Knife Swoon
Butternut Squash, Apple and Fennel Soup | Fork Knife Swoon

If you love butternut squash, try these next:

If you make this butternut squash soup, be sure to tag me on Instagram with the hashtag #forkknifeswoon and leave a comment and rating below letting me know how you liked it! ★★★★★ Star ratings are especially helpful because they help others find my recipes too. xo, Laura

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Butternut Squash, Apple and Fennel Soup | Fork Knife Swoon

Roasted Butternut Squash, Apple, and Fennel Soup

  • Author: Laura Bolton
  • Prep Time: 45 mins
  • Cook Time: 15 mins
  • Total Time: 1 hour
  • Yield: 4 Servings 1x
  • Category: Soup, Savory
  • Method: Stovetop, Roasting
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegan

Description

A healthy and hearty roasted butternut soup recipe that combines roasted butternut squash with sweet apples, fennel, onion, garlic, and good stock. Deliciously creamy (without any cream) and perfect for cozy fall/winter dinners. Gluten free and vegan friendly.


Ingredients

Scale

Butternut Squash, Apple and Fennel Soup

  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • 12 Tbsp walnut oil, plus more for serving ¹
  • 1 Tbsp fresh garlic, minced
  • 1 medium (about 11/2 cups) fennel bulb, stalks removed and diced
  • 1 large (about 2 cups) sweet or yellow onion, diced
  • 1 large (about 2 cups) apple, peeled and diced
  • 4 cups roasted butternut squash, recipe follows
  • 1/2 tsp dried thyme
  • 1/2 tsp ground sage
  • 3 cups vegetable stock
  • kosher salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste

Roasted Butternut Squash

  • 2 medium butternut squash, peeled, cored, and chopped into 1-inch cubes ²
  • olive oil
  • kosher salt and freshly-ground black pepper

Instructions

Roast the butternut squash

  1. Preheat the oven to 400℉. Arrange the the squash in an even layer on a parchment paper-lined sheet pan, and toss with just enough olive oil to coat. Season generously with salt and pepper.
  2. Roast for 30-40 minutes, tossing half-way through, until the squash is fork-tender and just beginning to brown. Set aside.

Make the roasted butternut squash soup

  1. Heat the olive and walnut oils in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat until shimmering. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes until fragrant.
  2. Add the fennel and onion, and cook, stirring occasionally until just softened, about 2-3 minutes. Add the apple, and continue cooking for another 2-3 minutes.
  3. Add the butternut squash, sage, and thyme to the pot, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 more minutes.
  4. Add the vegetable stock and season to taste with salt and pepper.
  5. Bring just to a boil, then turn the heat down to low and simmer gently for another 15 minutes.
  6. Remove the soup from the heat, and using a high speed blender or an immersion blender, blend until smooth and creamy. The soup will be hot! Serve warm with crispy bread, and a drizzle of walnut oil. Enjoy!!


Notes

¹ The walnut oil adds a subtle nuttiness and flavor that I love (something similar to a brown butter). If you’d prefer not to use it, you can simply use all olive oil instead.

² Depending on the size of your butternut squash, you may end up with slightly more roasted squash than you need for the soup. The squash can be roasted up to a week in advance and kept refrigerated in an airtight container until ready to use.

Keywords: roasted butternut squash soup, butternut squash soup with fennel, apple, vegan, creamy, easy, vegetable soup

Butternut Squash, Apple and Fennel Soup | Fork Knife Swoon