Butternut squash soup is one of my favorite things to enjoy when fall rolls around. But as soups go, it’s generally not enough to make a meal of. Oh, it’s tasty and creamy, but when you think about it, it’s really just veggies and broth. This soup is different though! Knowing how satisfying my Mediterranean red lentil soup is, I decided to add some red lentils to this butternut squash soup, along with coconut milk and homemade curry croutons. It’s so meal-worthy. Just as important as how filling a soup is, is how tasty it is. After all, if you’re making a meal of something it better be pretty darn enjoyable. So I seasoned up my red lentil butternut soup with some ginger, cumin, a touch of cinnamon, and coconut milk. It’s super rich and creamy and just the right blend of sweet and savory.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Tip: Depending on how sweet your squash is, you may want to add a bit of sweetener such as organic sugar or maple syrup, or some lemon juice to balance the flavors.
Olive oil. You can substitute another high heat oil if you’d like, such as coconut oil, vegetable oil, or corn oil. Onion. Garlic. Ginger. Spices. We’re using a blend of ground cumin and cinnamon. Does that sound unusual? It’s delicious! You’ll find this combination in lots of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern recipes like mujadara, and it’s perfect for this particular soup. Vegetable broth. Butternut squash. You could easily modify this recipe to use similar varieties of winter squash, such as sugar pumpkin, kabocha squash, and acorn squash. Split red lentils. Whole red lentils will also work, but they’ll take longer to cook. Coconut milk. The recipe calls for full-fat coconut milk from a can, though light coconut milk should also work if you’d like to reduce the fat and calorie content of the dish. Salt and pepper. Fresh cilantro. This is optional, but makes a great topping for this soup.
How It’s Made
The following is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you’d like to skip right to the recipe!
Bread cubes. Use a good crusty bread, such as sourdough or French. Olive oil. Again, feel free to swap this out with your favorite cooking oil. Spices. You’ll need curry powder and garlic powder. Salt and pepper.
Tip: You can thin the soup with some broth or water if it reduces too much while cooking, but keep this to a minimum, as you’ll be thinning the soup with coconut milk later on. Ladle your red lentil butternut squash soup into bowls and optional top each with a drizzle of coconut milk and some chopped fresh cilantro. Pile on those curry croutons and dig in!
More Fall Soups
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