Curried Butternut Squash and Apple Soup |Cooking With Amanda

Curried Butternut Squash and Apple Soup Photo

When the weather starts getting colder and the days shorter, there's nothing like a warm bowl of soup. This curried butternut squash soup is great with dinner or on its own as a light lunch.

My family's favorite way to enjoy it is for dinner alongside a nice warm veggie quesadilla. I think it's the perfect comfort soup after a long day.

What I love about soups with squash is that they form an ultra smooth creamy texture without actually adding any cream. Potatoes have that effect too, but have a little more starch and give soups a slightly grainier texture. I often substitute butternut squash for potatoes in many blended vegetable soups for this reason.

Curried Butternut Squash and Apple Soup Picture

For this soup, I really wanted to maximize the flavor of all my ingredients. We all know butternut squash does not have a strong flavor, but if you roast any vegetable you will get more flavor out of it.

Ready for some geeky science facts? Caramelization refers to the chemical reactions that occur when sugars start to break apart. It leaves behind all sorts of new compounds with stronger aromas and more intense flavors that can be sweet, sour, or bitter.

For this to happen you need temperatures to be above at least 220°F. So, if you are thinking about boiling instead of roasting your squash, you totally can, but know your soup will taste different.

Curried Butternut Squash and Apple Soup Image

Apples are the other main ingredient in this soup. It doesn't matter what kind of apples you use, as long as they are flavorful. I tasted my apples when I cut them to make sure they had a strong flavor.

Of course, it still was not enough for me in the end, which is why I added some apple juice to the soup. That's totally up to you though!

As you can tell, there is some flexibility in this recipe. Roast or don't roast. Add more apple flavor or leave it out. The spices pack a lot flavor too, so you really can't go wrong.

Enjoy! It's a very satisfying soup and perfect for the season.

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Curried Butternut Squash and Apple Soup Recipe

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Ingredients

2 pounds butternut squash, cubed
1 tablespoon oil
2 medium apples, diced
2 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup red onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 teaspoon cumin
pinch of cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons white table wine
3 cups vegetable broth
1/2 teaspoon cardamom
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup apple juice, optional

Directions

Preheat the oven to 450°F. Place the butternut squash cubes on a large baking sheet covered with foil. Drizzle the oil over the squash, sprinkle with salt and pepper and mix to coat the squash. Roast it in the oven for 25 minutes or until tender. Toss occasionally to prevent sticking.
In a medium pan heat the butter over medium heat until melted. Lower the heat and add the onions, apples, garlic, curry powder, cumin and cayenne. Gently cook until the onions are soft and slightly browned.
Add the wine to the pan and return the heat to medium while mixing for about a minute or until the pan is deglazed. Remove the mixture from the heat.
Add the apple mixture to a blender with 2 cups of broth, roasted butternut squash, cardamom nutmeg, and cinnamon. Blend until smooth.
Transfer the mixture into a large soup pot and add the remaining broth. Salt to taste.
Heat to a boil and stir in the apple juice if desired. Serve hot.