Butternut Squash and Bacon Soup

My Favourite Soups

Butternut Squash and Bacon Soup myfavouritepastime.com_2861I went to my local store last week and found several varieties of squash on sale. It’s time to look around and ask, “Which one shall I cook today” I’ve always been drawn towards butternut squash. I think I love it more for the colour and shape rather than anything else, but I must say it tastes really good too. The one I dread most is the acorn or pepper squash, which is mainly roasted or microwaved, because there is always this debate on weather the skin is edible or not because it can be hard and tough sometimes.

Butternut Squash and Bacon Soup myfavouritepastime.com_2855_2Anyway, I love this soup because it takes only a few minutes to make and it’s basically seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic, ginger and a glug of double cream. I love the addition of smoky bacon for “garnish” is it really a garnish or a clever way of sneaking in some meaty ingredient? I enjoy eating this soup and I hope you’ll do to. Enjoy the rest of the week!!!

  • Ingredients
  • 250g sliced bacon, coarsely chopped
  • 1 medium onion finely chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
  • 1 medium bell pepper finely chopped (I used a yellow one)
  • 700g (4½ cups) peeled, seeded and chopped butternut squash
  • 750ml (3 cups broth)
  • ½ cup heavy (35%, whipping) cream
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Butternut Squash and Bacon Soup myfavouritepastime.com_4196Please always remember to assemble all ingredients before you start

Butternut Squash and Bacon Soup myfavouritepastime.com_4199Cook the bacon until crisp. Drain and set aside and keep warm

Butternut Squash and Bacon Soup myfavouritepastime.com_4202Add onion, garlic, ginger and bell pepper to the rendered bacon fat and cook gently for 5-10 minutes until soft.

Butternut Squash and Bacon Soup myfavouritepastime.com_4203Add squash and 3 cups stock bring to the boil and simmer 15 minutes or until squash is tender. Blend or process to a puree. If the soup is too thick add a little more stock.

Butternut Squash and Bacon Soup myfavouritepastime.com_4208Return to the pot, add cream, adjust seasoning

Butternut Squash and Bacon Soup myfavouritepastime.com_4243_2and serve, topped with bacon.

Butternut Squash and Bacon Soup myfavouritepastime.com_2860The soup was delicious

Butternut Squash and Bacon Soup

Preparation time: 30 minutes; Cooking time: 40 minutes; Makes: 5 x 250ml cups soup

Ingredients

  • 250g sliced bacon, coarsely chopped
  • 1 medium onion finely chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
  • 1 medium bell pepper finely chopped (I used a yellow one)
  • 700g (4½ cups) peeled, seeded and chopped butternut squash
  • 750ml (3 cups broth)
  • ½ cup heavy (35%, whipping) cream
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Cook the bacon until crisp. Drain and set aside, keep warm.
  2. Add onion, garlic, ginger and bell pepper to the rendered bacon fat and cook gently for 5-10 minutes until soft.
  3. Add squash and 3 cups stock bring to the boil and simmer 15 minutes or until squash is tender. Blend or process to a puree. If the soup is too thick add a little more stock. Return to the pot, add cream, adjust seasoning and serve, topped with bacon.

Points to Note:

  1. 1 cup chopped squash is about 150g (5oz).
  2. You’ll need about 1 scant cup broth for every 200g butternut squash.

myfavouritepastime.com 

Author: Liz

I love everything food: eating, cooking, baking and travelling. I also love photography and nature.

52 thoughts

  1. I have to tell you, my ‘Squash Hating’ son actually ate the soup I left for his wife. (His 7 year old daughter ate some when I was ‘babysitting’ and she really liked it as well.) My son LOVED this soup – I was so surprised !! He said he loved all the different layers of flavors. He’s looking forward to more. I am most definitely going to be making this often – and sharing it often as well !! Looks like this will continue to be The Traveling Soup !! ; o )

    Reply

    1. Hi there Cecile,
      I am so glad your squash hating son loved the squash soup. How wonderful. I always feel over the top when my kids love the food I make, so I know how you feel right now. Thanks so much for giving me a feedback and do have a very pleasant day. My best regards to all of them.
      Liz

      Reply

  3. I have a wonderful Jewish friend who used to tell tales about ‘The Traveling Kosher Chicken’… Well, now I have tales to tell about ‘The Traveling Butternut Squash Soup’! I prepared your delicious soup this morning. I brought the ‘almost fully prepared’ soup to my son’s house because my grandchildren had a half day of school. My granddaughter had fun helping me blend the soup and adding the 1/2 cup of cream. (She thought the addition of cream was a great idea!) Her brother turned up his nose…. but what does he know – he’s only five… She and I LOVED it ! And my daughter-in-law loved the idea of butternut squash soup, so I left her some. Then the soup traveled to my niece’s home. She was thrilled that I’d brought it because she loves butternut squash. It took me a few moments to remember she was the one who had ‘pinned’ it when she saw my ‘pin’. Was she ever happy – she poured some into a container for her lunch tomorrow. I came home with one final serving, which I’m saving for my lunch tomorrow. I didn’t have any bacon and I used red pepper – because that’s what I had. The red pepper gave the soup a lovely orangery-red color. Talk about a big hit – your soup made a lot of tummies happy!! ; o )

    Reply

    1. Hi there Cecile,
      I am so sorry I took so long to respond to your lovely message. I took a break and when I came back there were so many pending messages, I didn’t know where to start. It was so overwhelming and now I’ve started my routine posting and cooking which eats a chunk of my time.
      I have thoroughly enjoyed reading your story. Thanks so much for making the soup and for transporting it to share with others. I’m glad your granddaughter had fun and niece loved it too. I hope she enjoyed it for lunch. I love a kick of pepper in soups too so that was a great idea.
      Thanks so much, Cecile. You’ve made my day. I wish you a fantastic week!
      Liz

      Reply

      1. I got such a kick out of how much people loved your soup! One quick thing, I used A red pepper….instead of a a yellow pepper – and the use of a red pepper gave the soup a wonderful color. (Although the addition of a bit of red pepper would also be delicious.)

        Reply

        1. I totally agree with you. I was bit disappointed by the colour of my soup, but loved the taste. I had a lot of yellow peppers that needed to be used immediately. Next time I shall try red. Have a wonderful day, my friend!
          Liz

  7. Yum. I adore anything with bacon fat in it (terrible as it sounds, but it’s delicious!) and I can imagine how good this soup would taste with the salty, savoury bacon and sweet butternut squash. I can understand why it’s one of your favourites Liz!

    Reply

    1. Hi Laura!
      Thanks for visiting after a long spell of silence. How is Australia? I bet the weather is good and life is good too. Bacon is so good, even though it has that unhealthy looking fat! ha ha have a lovely weeK!
      Liz

      Reply

  12. Hurrah !! I have all the ingredients…. except the bacon… in my fridge. I’m going to make this fabulous soup right now!! On another note – my gardens look fabulous right now, and I’ve been having ‘Pizza & a Fire Nights’ so others can enjoy the ‘fruits of my labor’. I’ve also been taking lots of fun weekend trips – but – I haven’t posted anything new in more than a month…. Last night I prepared a delicious chicken liver pate made with cream and brandy which I will post tomorrow. I think you’ll love it ! ; o )

    Reply

    1. Ha ha I love the hurrah…and the fact that you had all the ingredients. Did you make the soup? Have you posted the chicken liver pate made with cream and brandy? I look forward to seeing it. Have a fantastic week! best wishes!
      liz

      Reply

      1. I bet you found my looong comment about The Traveling Soup after you sent this reply!! I LOVE THE SOUP – it seems everyone loved it !! That soup is now officially on my ‘Need to Make This Often’ list ; o ) (Yesterday I found a recipe for Butternut Squash Soup with Apples – I want to try that one as well.) And I DID post the recipe for Pâté with Brandy and Shallots – check it out!!

        Reply

        1. I like the idea of Need to make often List” I am certainly borrowing the idea. I am so thrilled that everyone loved the soup. I adore soups. Please share the recipe for the apple-butternut squash. It sounds like a great combination. I wish you a happy week and yes I saw the Pâté. I need to step up and make some Pâté too!
          Liz

  15. Yum! I love butternut squash soup. The bacon garnish is perfect! I am so looking forward to fall foods. Unfortunately my winter squashes aren’t doing so well in the garden…somebody is eating the blossoms off.

    Reply

    1. Fall is here but it’s more like summer right now. Who is this eating your blossoms, what a shame. I hope at least you’ll have a few left for some soup. Have a good week and thanks for stopping by
      Liz

      Reply

        1. I am so sorry to hear that. What a pity. Gardening is a hard nut to crack. I hope next year you’ll have better luck. My best wishes to everybody!
          Liz

      1. Here’s one way I found……
        “Put bacon slices in a bowl, season them with pepper and toss with the brown sugar. Cover a baking sheet with parchment or foil and arrange the bacon in a single layer on top. Sprinkle any sugar left in the bowl over the bacon. Top with another layer of parchment or foil and top it, squarely, with another baking sheet. The baking sheet will flatten the bacon as it cooks.

        Place the tray in the center of the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Check the bacon by lifting the top tray and parchment. If it is not golden brown and fairly crispy, resist the temptation to turn up the oven temperature, and cook it for 10 to 15 minutes longer. Check it again. Keep in mind that when you remove the tray and transfer the bacon to a serving platter or individual plates, the bacon will “crisp” up a little more. Be patient!”
        This was courtesy of the food network

        Have a great day.

        Reply

        1. Thank you so much for the detailed instructions. I look forward to some extra crunchy and sweet bacon. At what temperature should I bake?
          Liz

  19. Looks lovely Liz! I love acorn squash. I usually bake it with a dab of butter and a light sprinkle of brown sugar. Tastes fantastic. 1/2 acorn per person. But I really like Butternut squash too and particularly in soup. It just has such a lovely rich flavor. When I was in Australia – Queensland Blues were a favorite. What you do with them is poke some holes, throw the whole thing in the oven to bake, Cut in half, scoop out the seeds and serve as is – a delicious vegetable on the plate. I brought some seeds back one year and we had 3 fairly good size ones, kept the seeds but they are fickle lovers, not necessarily coming true to variety, they will cross pollinate with anyone! I really like this recipe and am going to try it! Hope you are having a lovely day?

    Reply

    1. Hi Sandy,
      You know there so much acorn squash in the local store right now I am totally going to try your simple method of baking, with some honey garlic chicken wings on the side…I have just googled the Queensland blue. It looks like something out of a fairy tale. what a pity that it cross-pollinates with anyone. I hope you found time to try the recipe and thank you so much for being such a humble and gracious lady. I am so grateful I met you, Sandy, I hope one day I’ll see you in person!
      Liz

      Reply

      1. No, the one about the butternut squash soup. I have spaghetti squash cooked in the refrigerator, but I don’t think it would make a good soup. Any cheese-y buttermilk biscuit gets my vote!

        Reply

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