From Courtney Schuchmann, MS, RD, LDN – University of Chicago Medicine Registered Dietitian
The weather is getting cooler, which means many of us are gravitating toward warm, comfort food. This gut-friendly recipe is packed with tons of nutrients such as vitamins A and C, potassium, magnesium and fiber, and will warm you up on chilly fall nights.
Many cream soups are loaded with extra fat and calories from heavy cream or coconut cream, but this recipe omits the cream while still providing a velvety consistency. Many soups from restaurants, grocery store delis, or canned varieties are loaded with sodium, by preparing this recipe at home you can control the amount of added salt by selecting low sodium or no salt added broth/stock. The addition of garlic and onion provide flavor to this recipe, and a prebiotic-rich boost to fuel your gut health.
Super Simple Butternut Squash Soup
Ingredients:
1 butternut squash
1 small onion
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tbsp olive oil
½ tsp salt
½ tsp all spice or nutmeg
2 (14 oz) cans low sodium vegetable broth/stock
- Prep the butternut squash by peeling the skin, cutting the squash in half, removing the seeds, and chopping the squash into cubes. To make this recipe easier you could purchase already prepared butternut squash cubes.
- In a large pot sauté a small, diced onion in one tablespoon of olive oil. Once the onions have slightly caramelized and softened (about 3-5 minutes) add in a tablespoon of minced garlic and sauté for 1 additional minute.
- Add the chopped-up butternut squash and 2 cans of low sodium vegetable broth/stock to the garlic and onion mixture. Season the mixture with salt, pepper, and nutmeg/all spice.
- Let the mixture simmer on medium to high heat for about 25 minutes or until butternut squash is fork tender.
- Use an emulsion blender to blend the contents of the soup to a pureed consistency where there are no lumps.
- Serve the soup topped with toasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds) or a little shredded cheese such as asiago or parmesan.