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This French Squash Soup is a sweet and savory fall delight! It’s made with roasted squash, pear, and onion blended with Herbes de Provence to create the most decadent flavor.

above image of two bowls of French squash soup garnished next to two bowls of fresh tarragon garnish.


Easy Recipe for Squash Soup

Squash is meant for soup. Seriously. When it’s roasted until tender, then blended into a soup, the texture becomes so incredibly velvety, creamy, and mouthwatering.

This French Squash Soup is the perfect example of that. This recipe is an interesting take on a typical butternut squash soup. It’s made with roasted butternut, acorn, or kabocha squash blended with onion, pear, herbs and seasonings, and broth. The ingredients are minimal, but the result is incredible! Thanks to the squash, this soup is so thick and creamy without any added dairy.

This recipe originated from Simone Miller’s cookbook, Paleo Soups and Stews and this book is jam-packed with over 100 delectable recipes for every season and occasion. Plus accompaniments like oyster crackers, baguette bread, and so much more. It is gorgeous, practical, and a total necessity for any kitchen!

This is a Fall dinner that everybody will love! Plus, it stores beautifully, so you can make a big batch and enjoy it all week long.

What is Squash Soup Made Of?

  • Squash: Butternut squash is a classic, but you can also use acorn squash, kabocha squash, or any combination of the three.
  • Ghee or Oil: You’ll need a little bit of ghee or avocado oil for roasting the squash and a little bit for sautéing the onion. Ghee provides a mouthwatering flavor depth, but avocado oil is a great dairy-free option.
  • Seasonings: You’ll need a simple, but powerful combination of Herbes de Provence, salt, and pepper. Herbes de Provence is a vibrant mixture of dried rosemary, fennel, thyme, basil, and more.
  • Onion: Sautéed onion creates the perfect flavor base for the soup.
  • Pear: Pear might be an unusual addition to a soup, but its sweet flavor only intensifies the sweetness of the squash.
  • Broth: I use chicken broth, but feel free to use veggie broth to keep this soup vegetarian.
  • Fresh Tarragon: The subtly sweet tarragon flavor is the perfect garnish for your bowl of soup.

How to Make French Squash Soup

This squash soup recipe is velvety smooth and decadent, but requires just 10 minutes of prep!

  1. Roast the squash: Cut your squash in half and use a spoon to scoop out the seeds and fleshy insides. Brush the cut sides with ghee or oil, season with salt and pepper, then place onto the baking sheet with the cut side up. Roast at 425ºF until very soft, then set aside to cool.
  2. Combine the soup ingredients: In a dutch oven or stockpot, heat ghee or oil over medium heat. Once hot, add in the onion and a sprinkle of salt and cook until golden brown. Add in the pears and cook for another few minutes. When the squash is cool, scoop out the flesh and add it to the pot along with broth and herbes de Provence. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the pears are very soft.
  3. Blend: Working in batches, puree the soup in a blender until smooth. Garnish with tarragon, then serve!

Do You Peel a Butternut Squash to Roast It?

Nope! While I don’t recommend actually eating the peel of the squash, let alone blending it into your soup, there’s no need to peel it before getting started with this recipe.

All you have to do is cut the squash in half, then roast it with the cut side up. This will soften the “meaty” part of the squash enough that you can literally just scoop it out of the peel with a spoon. I find this a whole lot easier than trying to peel the squash before cooking it.

How Do You Thicken Squash Soup?

If you follow this recipe as-is, you really shouldn’t have any issues with the texture. The squash, along with the other ingredients, blends together to create a thick and creamy soup.

Now, if you do happen to end up with a squash soup that is a little bit too thin, simply pour it back into a stockpot on the stove and let it simmer until it has thickened to your liking.

Alternatively, you can whisk together a cornstarch slurry using 3 tablespoons of water and 1 tablespoon of cornstarch. Add that, little bits at a time, to the soup until it reaches your desired texture.

closeup image of a bowl of squash soup with another bowl of soup and two bowls of fresh tarragon next to it.

Tips and Notes

  • Roast the squash until very soft. It needs to be completely soft so that you can easily scoop the flesh out of the peel. If there’s any crunch to it, then it won’t blend smoothly into the soup.
  • Use a high-powered blender. While an immersion blender can work in a pinch, it doesn’t quite achieve that same smooth, velvety creaminess that a high-powered stand blender does.
  • If you want to speed up the cooking process, you can cut the squash into cubes so that it cooks faster. Just be sure to remove the peel first!

Serving Suggestions

This French squash soup makes an excellent entree or side dish garnished with roasted pumpkin seeds, air fryer chickpeas, croutons, or even cooked and crumbled bacon!

If you’re serving it as an entree, try it with:

If you’re serving it as a side dish, try it with:

How to Store

Leftover squash soup can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months.

To serve it again, simply thaw leftovers overnight in the fridge if frozen, then warm in the microwave or on the stove until heated through.

Keep in mind that the soup will thicken up as it sits, so you may need to add a splash of broth to thin it out when you reheat it.

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above image of two bowls of French squash soup garnished next to two bowls of fresh tarragon garnish.

French Squash Soup

This French Squash Soup is a sweet and savory Fall delight! It's made with roasted squash, pear, and onion blended with Herbes de Provence to create the most decadent flavor.
Servings 4 -6
Prep Time 10 minutes

Ingredients
  

  • 2 medium butternut acorn, or kabocha squash, or a combination
  • 2 tablespoons melted ghee or avocado oil divided
  • 2 teaspoons salt divided
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1 large onion chopped
  • 2 pears peeled, cored, and diced
  • 6 cups chicken broth
  • 1 teaspoon herbes de Provence
  • Fresh tarragon for garnish (optional)

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 425°F. Cut the squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Brush the cut sides with 1 tablespoon of the ghee and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of the salt and the pepper. Place the squash cut side up on a baking sheet and roast for 60 to 75 minutes, until very soft. Set aside to cool.
  • About 15 minutes before the squash is done roasting, heat the remaining tablespoon of ghee in a dutch oven over medium heat. When the ghee is hot, add the onion and the remaining teaspoon of salt and sauté, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes, until golden brown and softened. Add the pears and cook for another 5 minutes.
  • When the squash is cool enough to handle, scoop out the flesh and add it to the pot with the onions and pears. Add the broth and herbes de Provence and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes, or until the pears are very soft.
  • Puree the soup in batches in a blender until smooth. Garnish with tarragon, if desired.

Notes

Slow Cooker Instructions: Instead of roasting the squash, peel and cut it into large dice. After completing Step 2, transfer the onion and pears to a slow cooker. Add the diced squash, salt, pepper, chicken broth, and herbes de Provence and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours. Proceed with Step 4.
Pressure Cooker Instructions: Instead of roasting the squash, peel and cut it into large dice. After completing Step 2, transfer the onion and pears to a pressure cooker. Add the diced squash, salt, pepper, chicken broth, and herbes de Provence and cook on high pressure for 15 minutes. Quick-release the pressure and proceed with Step 4.
For vegan: Sub oil instead of butter and use vegetable broth.
This recipe was shared with permission by Simone Miller from her cookbook, Paleo Soups and Stews.

Nutrition

Calories: 226kcalCarbohydrates: 43gProtein: 10gFat: 3.4gSaturated Fat: 0.8gSodium: 2100mgFiber: 11.1gSugar: 16.8g
Course: Soup
Cuisine: Gluten-free
Author: Lexi


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  1. This recipe sounds so good. I have a pumpkin at home that I haven’t yet decided what to do with and I am going to make this soup and sub the pumpkin for the butternut!