Kid Friendly Butternut Squash Soup
Celebrate fall flavor with kid friendly butternut squash soup! This creamy and nutritious soup is gently spiced and perfectly smooth to appeal to your picky eaters.
Creamy butternut squash soup embodies fall. Cozy up, pull out some crusty bread, and ladle yourself a bowl of this deliciously smooth and colorful soup. And you know what makes it even better? Since this recipe is light and healthy, you won’t feel like you need to hibernate afterward. 😉
This soup is quick enough to make on a weeknight and it’s a low-key way to get your kids to eat some veggies. The first step is to get a handle on that whole butternut. Don’t be intimidated!
Tip for Peeling and Cutting Butternut Squash
Getting a whole butternut squash broken down l can be quite the ordeal. So here’s a trick that helps you do it faster (with less chance of knife slips.)
Pierce the squash every few inches with a knife, place it on a large plate, and microwave it for 5 minutes. It’ll come out hot and slightly softened. Give it a few minutes to cool, then peel and chop.
You’ll notice the peeler just GLIDES over the squash. And chopping is SO much easier than if you were dealing with a rock solid squash. It’s great!
How to Make Kid Friendly Butternut Squash Soup
Once the squash is ready this soup comes together quickly.
In a large pot, sauté carrots and onion in coconut oil for five minutes, then add squash and broth and allow it all to simmer until veggies are soft (15 minutes or so).
If you have an immersion blender, blend it up carefully right in the pot. Otherwise, use your blender to blend the soup up in batches. We like to make this soup super smooth so it appeals to our kids. No slippery bits of onion to see here!
After blending, add spices and coconut milk, and then return the soup to a simmer briefly to heat it soup through. That’s it!
A Note about Smooth v. Chunky
We made this soup extra smooth, but it does actually work well with tender chunks of cooked veggie, if that’s your jam.
Spinach, potatoes, carrots, or cauliflower would work quite nicely. You can also puree only half of the soup to leave some chunky parts in the mix. Experiment and let us know!
Dairy Substitutions to Try
We wanted to make this recipe vegetarian and dairy-free friendly so all our friends can enjoy it. So we used vegetable broth and coconut milk.
But this soup also absolutely works with chicken broth and milk or half-and-half. The flavor profile will be a little different, but both ways are delicious.
What to Serve with Butternut Squash Soup
We love this thick and creamy soup with some homemade no-knead artisan bread and an extra splash of coconut milk or heavy cream. A green salad is refreshing on the side, too.
Creamy Butternut Squash Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger grated
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper
- 2 pounds butternut squash 8 cups cubed
- 1 medium carrot peeled and chopped
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 1/3 cup half and half or cream
Instructions
- Cut butternut squash in half, remove seeds, then chop into 1-inch cubes.
- In a large pot, melt coconut oil and add brown sugar, and all of the spices. Stir to combine. Add squash cubes and chopped carrot and saute 5-8 minutes or until the squash becomes slightly tender and browned. Add in broth, squash cubes, and carrot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer covered for 15-20 minutes, or until squash and carrots are softened.
- Working in batches, blend the mixture in a blender, or use an immersion blender. Add a bit more chicken broth if mixture is too thick to blend. Return to pot and stir in half and half.
- Top with candied pecans, a dash of nutmeg and a swirl of half and half or heavy cream. Serve with crusty bread and a yummy green salad. Enjoy!
Nutrition
www.superhealthykids.com
Natalie Monson
I'm a registered dietitian, mom of 4, avid lover of food and strong promoter of healthy habits. Here you will find lots of delicious recipes full of fruits and veggies, tips for getting your kids to eat better and become intuitive eaters and lots of resources for feeding your family.
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I roasted my veggies in the oven and only added 1/2 c coconut milk. It’s my new favorite recipe for butternut squash soup (and I’ve tried several)!
It sounds like a very good tasting, nourishing soup. I will be making it soon.
My 3 yo daughter loves it!
Thank you for the recipe! I made the soup for my 16 month old and it tasted great. He’s been teething (denying foods) so thankfully this went right down. Yum!
Anything my toddler will happily eat deserves 5 stars. Baked my veggies as recommend in the comments below and used 1/2 cup of coconut milk instead of 1 cup. Yummy 🙂
So happy to hear that! Thanks for sharing!
Have you tried adding apple? I want to try your recipe and know of other recipes that also have apple – wondering if apple works in your recipe too as I like the ease of your recipe!
Apple makes a delicious addition to this soup!