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For more than 10 years I’ve been in LOVE with this vegetarian dairy-free Butternut Squash Soup. It’s flavorful, silky and ultra creamy even without milk, cream or butter. This soup is pure comfort food thickened with fresh roasted vegetables and protein packed red lentils. Each bowl packs a whopping 12 grams of protein, 14 grams of fiber and loads of Vitamin A.
Butternut Squash and Red Lentil Soup
This is an amazing soup. Other than a little olive oil, it’s primarily made with fresh vegetables and plenty of spice. The vegetables are roasted then added to a pot with caramelized onions and red lentils. Everything is cooked until soft then pureed creating a lovely, thick, hearty and filling simple main course.
Ingredients Overview
For the soup:
- olive oil
- butternut squash
- carrots
- table salt
- fresh ground black pepper
- chili powder
- garlic
- onion
- crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
- red lentils
- vegetable stock or broth
Optional for serving and/or garnish:
- chopped parsley leaves
- a sprinkle of chili powder or paprika
- plain Greek yogurt mixed with olive oil, water and salt
- a drizzle of olive oil
- fresh ground black pepper
- a squeeze of fresh lemon juice
- crunchy croutons
- naan bread
- pita bread
- roasted pepitas
- crumbled pita chips
- crusty bread
How to make roasted Butternut Squash Soup
1. Roast the vegetables
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Combine the squash and carrots on a rimmed sheet pan. Drizzle with olive oil then add chili powder, salt and pepper. Roast until tender stirring every 15 minutes.
2. Caramelize the onions
Pour the remaining olive oil in a Dutch oven (affiliate link) or soup pot over medium-high heat. Sauté the onions in until caramelized. Add the garlic, crushed red pepper flakes, chili powder, salt and pepper. Stir until fragrant.
3. Make the soup
Add the lentils to the pot and sauté until coated. Stir in the broth and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer until the lentils are broken down and mushy. Add the squash and carrots. Using an immersion blender (affiliate link) process the soup until smooth and silky. Add more broth if needed for a thinner soup.
Check the seasoning and add salt and pepper if needed. Remove from the heat.
4. Serve
Combine the Greek yogurt with 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 tablespoon water and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Swirl the yogurt sauce over individual bowls of soup.
Serve with croutons, naan or crusty bread.
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Healthy, Easy Butternut Squash Soup Recipe
This veggie soup is loaded with flavor and takes only a few minutes to prepare. Roasting brings out the sweetness in the squash and carrots while caramelizing the onions builds tons of flavor. Finally, the broken down lentils gives this soup a velvety consistency.
As you probably know, lentils are a super food providing protein and fiber as well as two essential amino acids. They’re low in calories, high in nutrition and taste great!
Variations and Add-Ins
- Substitute ground cumin for 1 teaspoon of the chili powder
- Add 1 teaspoon curry powder for equal amounts chili powder
- Stir in your favorite fresh herbs like parsley, thyme, rosemary and/or sage
- Add the juice of half a lemon at the end
- Substitute chicken broth for the vegetable broth
- Stir in half a cup of heavy cream for a richer soup
Storing, freezing and reheating
Store leftover Butternut Squash Soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator. The soup will keep for at least 5 days.
This soup can be frozen in an airtight container for up to 3 months. To reheat, thaw overnight in the refrigerator then reheat gently on the stovetop or on 50% power in the microwave.
Butternut Squash Soup
Ingredients
- ¼ cup olive oil divided, plus extra for serving
- 1 pound butternut squash diced in 1 inch pieces
- 4 medium carrots peeled and diced
- 1 ¼ teaspoons table salt
- 1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons chili powder divided
- 1 large onion diced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes optional
- 1 cup red lentils (7.5oz or 213g)
- 6 cups vegetable stock or broth (low sodium) plus more as needed for desired consistency
- chopped parsley chili powder or paprika for garnish
- ½ cup plain Greek yogurt for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425℉. Combine the diced squash and carrots on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Roast and stir every 15 minutes until the vegetables are well browned and tender, about 30 to 40 minutes.
- While the vegetables are roasting heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large soup pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook stirring frequently until lightly caramelized, about 15 minutes. Add the garlic, crushed red pepper flakes, remaining 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Add the lentils and stir until coated in oil. Add 6 cups of vegetable broth to the Dutch oven. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer until the lentils are mushy and completely broken down, about 10 to 15 minutes.
- Add the squash and carrots to the Dutch oven. Using an immersion blender, process the soup until smooth and silky. Add more broth if needed for desired consistency. Check the soup and season with additional salt and pepper as needed. Remove from the heat.
- To serve combine Greek yogurt with one tablespoon olive oil, 1 tablespoon water and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Serve the soup with swirls of the yogurt sauce, a sprinkle of paprika, chili powder or parsley leaves and a drizzle of olive oil.
Recipe Notes
- Substitute chicken broth for the vegetable broth
- Add 1/2 cup heavy cream or half-and-half at the end for a richer soup (taste the soup before adding)
- Serve with croutons, crusty bread, naan, pepitas or crumbled pita chips. Anything crunchy works well
- For an extra bite of acidity, stir in the juice of half a lemon at the end.
- Add 1 teaspoon cumin in place of 1 teaspoon chili powder if desired.
Nutrition
More great healthy soup recipes
I love a hearty bowl of homemade soup that tastes great even without the meat like this Curried Split Pea Soup. It’s a fresh take on a traditional recipe.
Check out some of our favorite guilt free soup recipes!
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View this RecipeOriginally published October 2014, updated September 2024
Tricia Buice
I bet it is still hot down there. Thanks for sharing on Facebook Kari!
Becky Green
Tricia, just wanted you to know, my husband LOVED this soup! It is going to be a recipe to keep & have again! 😀 What wonderful flavors! AND so healthy too! THANK YOU!! 😀 (I paired it with an Onion & Sage Focaccia Bread! WOW!) 😀
Tricia Buice
Yeah! Thanks for letting me know Becky. Don’t you just love how healthy it is and still full of flavor? Hope you have a wonderful weekend.
Amy (Savory Moments)
This is a lovely and warming fall soup and the color looks so pretty.
Tricia Buice
Thanks Amy – it is a filling and satisfying soup. Have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by!
2 Sisters Recipes...by Anna and Liz
Its’ funny Tricia, I made a zucchini and lentil soup the other day, except the colors are not as pretty as your soup.
Tricia Buice
I bet it was tasty though!
Tricia Buice
It is a fun family outing Maureen. Have a great week!
Betty
Beautiful soup! Butternut and red lentil is my “go-to” soup for winter- I always keep containers in my freezer to take for lunch.
Tricia Buice
Thanks Betty!
ATasteOfMadness
This looks amazing! AND I almost have all of the ingredients! I love soup at this time of year!
Tricia Buice
Hope you love it like we do. Such a rich flavor without the fatty ingredients. Have a good week!
Susan
I just made butternut squash soup recently and my husband loved it. This recipe looks even more hearty with the red lentils in it. What a great idea!
Tricia Buice
My husband loved this one too. I was amazed at the rich flavor. Hope you have a good week!
Kitchen Belleicious
the color- the flavor is amazing! Your pictures are so beautiful
Tricia Buice
My grandson is a mess Jessica! The flavor and color is great in this soup. Thanks for stopping by!
Angie@Angie's Recipes
This lentil soup looks amazing with all the healthy veggies, Tricia. I love the golden autumn colour.
Monica
I literally just made curried red lentil soup a few days ago! I’m with you at being amazed and impressed by all the creamy soups we can make w/o any dairy thanks to these wonderful vegetables. I would welcome a big pot of this right now…can’t have too much soup once the weather turns cold. It makes me feel warm and cozy just looking at your gorgeous pics.
Chris @ The Café Sucré Farine
This soup is beautiful Tricia, such vibrant color. I love soups like this that are cream and delicious with just lots of veggies.
cheri
Hi Tricia, as you probably know I am a total lentil fiend, love this soup.
Becky Green
O.K., it looks like my comment didn’t go through earlier. So, here’s what I said—-I will HAVE TO try this recipe! It looks WONDERFUL! (as usual) 🙂 Tonight we’re having a Deer Stew.
Becky Green
Tricia, just to let you know….When I hit submit to my comment, (I’m not even sure it went through) this thing told me I was making comments too quickly & to slow down. I ONLY did that one comment. LOL Just thought you might like to know, incase this shows a problem.
Dom
you know when that much fresh goodness goes into a soup it just has to be good… it looks superb and I love the spices in here too… gorgeous autumnal soup x
Mike @TheIronYou
That is an amazing soup indeed Tricia!