Enjoy the comforting flavors of fall with this vegan Butternut Squash Soup. It's infused with the warmth of ginger and a burst of citrusy brightness from fresh orange juice. This plant-based silky smooth soup is a cozy bowl of goodness that captures the essence of autumn in every spoonful. Gluten-free.
Saturday's farmer's market was overflowing with squash. I couldn't resist, even though I already had a bag full of gigantic heads of cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, carrots, tomatoes and more.
I was in a soup mood, browsing the stalls and planning . . . cauliflower soup, tomato soup, carrot-ginger soup, potato-leek soup, good old chicken noodle soup and well, I just had to add butternut squash soup with ginger to that list of mine.
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❤️ Why you'll love this recipe
- This Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Ginger and Orange juice is warm, smooth and silky.
- It has a zesty flavour from freshly grated ginger and orange juice that makes it far more interesting than ordinary butternut squash soup.
- It's dairy-free, but creamy and gluten-free, of course. And if you keep your toppings plant-based, this is a vegan butternut squash soup.
- I often make butternut squash soup with apple, or even with lemongrass and coconut milk, but this recipe uses the juice of half a large orange and some freshly minced ginger.
- A garnish of crispy fried shallots, toasted sage leaves, or toasted pumpkin seeds provides a crunchy texture, perfect for a creamy soup.
- This easy butternut squash soup recipe is one you'll make on repeat once you make it the first time!
🛒 Ingredients
Let's make a batch of the BEST creamy vegan Roasted Butternut Squash Soup!
- butternut squash: one 2 - 3 pound squash
- oil: olive oil for roasting the squash
- onion
- garlic: fresh cloves give the best flavour
- ginger: freshly grated ginger root
- orange juice: freshly squeezed is best but you can use store-bought orange juice
- broth: vegetable broth for a vegan or vegetarian diet, or chicken broth
🥄 Instructions
Here's a short overview of what you'll do to make this vegan butternut squash soup recipe. You'll find complete, detailed instructions in the recipe card below.
- First, cut the squash into cubes. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and roast the squash in the oven while you sauté onions and garlic cloves in a large soup pot or Dutch oven.
- Then, add the roasted cubes to the soup pot along with fresh ginger, orange juice and vegetable stock or broth.
- Simmer to allow the flavours to blend, taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary, then purée in a blender or with an immersion blender (stick blender) until velvety smooth.
- Finally, use the same skillet to quickly sauté thin slices of shallot and/or sage leaves to add a crispy garnish.
- Ladle the soup into bowls, garnish, and a few grinds of fresh pepper if you like, and wait for the compliments!
👍🏼 Helpful tips
Always taste your soup once it has finished cooking and adjust the seasoning if necessary. All vegetable or chicken broths vary widely in the amount of salt added. You may need to add a little more to help bring out the flavour of the roasted squash.
Soup too thick? Stir in another cup or more of vegetable stock until it has the consistency you like.
🥶 Make ahead and freeze for later
Store this soup in the fridge in an airtight container. It will last for 3 to 4 days.
This butternut squash soup with ginger freezes well. I often make a double batch of this recipe, pour it into freezer-safe containers and freeze it for winter lunches. It will last for 3 months.
🍽 Serving suggestions
Serve this soup with Super Seedy Snack Crackers. They're packed full of pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, and chia seeds with a little nutritional yeast added in for extra flavour.
Or make a batch of gluten-free Cheesy Herb Cornbread or mini Broccoli Cheese Muffins or Gluten-free Baking Powder Biscuits to go with your soup.
💡 Soup topping ideas
A plain bowl of soup is good, but a bowl of soup with toppings is better! Adding toppings adds interest, crunch and flavour and makes a simple bowl of soup far more appealing. Why not upgrade your bowl of soup into a masterpiece?
These are some of my favourite soup toppings. Choose one or more to add to your soup. And find more inspiration and suggestions for combinations in Healthy Soup Topping Ideas.
- crispy fried shallots
- fried sage leaves
- croutons: homemade gluten-free
- polenta croutons
- mixed herbs
- a spoonful of salsa
- spiced pumpkin seeds
- crumbled tortilla chips
- crumbled bacon bits (not for vegan diet)
- crispy prosciutto (not for vegan diet)
- Parmesan crisps (not for vegan diet)
- a swirl of yogurt or sour cream (not for vegan diet or use vegan sour cream)
Go wild and make it a meal! Enjoy, everyone!
🗒 More recipes with butternut squash
Here's a collection of healthy gluten-free butternut squash recipes (that aren't soup!)
🌟 Did you make this recipe?
When you make this vegan Butternut Squash Soup with Ginger and Orange please leave me a comment and a star rating below! I love hearing when you've made one of my recipes. Subscribe to my newsletter and have new recipes delivered straight to your inbox once a week.
📖 Recipe
Butternut Squash Soup with Ginger and Orange
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 2 - 3 lb medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch cubes
- 2 teaspoons olive oil, extra virgin
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil or grapeseed oil, or other high temperature oil
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- ½ inch knob fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
- ½ cup orange juice, freshly squeezed
- 2 ½ cups organic vegetable broth, or chicken broth (not for vegan diet)
- sea salt or Kosher salt and ground pepper to taste
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 400°F. and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Peel and cut the squash in half. Remove the seeds. Chop into 1-inch cubes.
- Put in a large bowl and toss with 2 - 3 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil. Spread out on the baking sheet in a single layer and roast for 20 minutes or until tender.
- Meanwhile, saute onion in oil in a large pot until transparent but not browned. Add the chopped garlic to the pot and cook for 2 minutes.
- Once the squash is tender, add it to the pot along with the ginger, orange juice and broth. Simmer for about 5 minutes.
- Season with sea salt and pepper. Taste and adjust if necessary.
- Transfer to a high-speed blender and puree until as smooth as velvet. You may have to do this in 2 or more batches, depending on the size of your blender container.
- Serve, topped with crispy shallots and toasted sage leaves, or with toasted pumpkin seeds or other topping suggested in the post above.
Notes
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published in 2017. It's been so popular that I've updated it with new photos, extra tips and information.
Alison
Simple and easy to make - I cheated by buying frozen butternut squash as I can’t always get fresh here in uk. Subtle flavours , delicious
S
I added finely grated orange peel ribs to give more “bite” to the orange, as well as one little apple, peeled, cored and in chunks blended in for a bit more sweetness. Some chillies salt for kick
Elaine
Love your idea of adding some chilli salt! Thanks for sharing.
Deb
Thank you so much for sharing the yummy butternut squash soup with ginger and orange.It was given the thumbs up by all who supped.
Flavour & Savour
Hi Deb,
That's great! Thanks for letting me know. Love the hints of ginger and citrus in that soup!