- Ina Garten adds curry powder to butternut squash soup for a bold, warm twist.
- Roasting squash, apples, and onions enhances the soup’s flavor and texture.
- Toppings like cashews and coconut add crunch, nutrients, and extra flavor.
Cooler weather means that soup season is upon us. Whether you’re a fan of classics like chicken noodle soup or lean more towards vibrant recipes like lasagna soup, there’s just something about fall and winter weather that makes us all crave a cozy bowl of comfort. But sometimes, the tried-and-true soup recipes we turn to each year can start to feel a little bit boring. Enter Ina Garten, who’s shaking things up with her take on a chilly-weather staple: butternut squash soup.
In her Substack newsletter, the Barefoot Contessa answered a reader question: “Every autumn, I find myself bored with all the fall classics [like] butternut squash soup,” the home cook wrote. “Do you have any suggestions for making them a little more exciting?”
Never one to gatekeep her cooking secrets, Garten was quick to reply. “I’m with you,” she answered. “That’s why I like to make traditional dishes with a twist. How about adding warm Indian curry powder to Roasted Butternut Squash Soup? Roasting the vegetables before making the soup brings out their sweetness and caramelizes the squash.”
Since eating your vegetables comes with a big slew of health benefits, we love any suggestion for ways to pack more veggies into our diets. Add in the fact that butternut squash makes a deliciously healthy base for any meal, and we’re sold on trying Garten’s flavorful twist on butternut squash soup.
Garten’s butternut squash soup recipe involves roasting squash, apples and onions, then pureeing the roasted mixture along with some chicken stock. Once you’ve got that beautiful, golden-colored soup mixture, it gets seasoned with salt and pepper and curry powder to taste. It sounds delicious enough on its own, but Garten ups the ante with a pretty impressive topping bar to go along with the soup.
“I serve it with condiments like chopped cashews, toasted coconut and tangy sliced scallions for crunch and extra flavor,” she writes. Cashews, coconut and scallions all have their own healthy perks, so Garten’s toppings of choice are more than just crunchy and flavorful.
Garten went on to address another fall food in her newsletter: the humble sweet potato. “You can use the same idea with sweet potatoes,” she said. “Adding some spice gives them more flavor, which is why I love the combination of smoky chipotle peppers with creamy sweet potatoes. It’s a great way to bump up the flavor in familiar holiday side dishes.” Sign us up.
Looking for other Ina Garten recipes to add to your cold-weather meal rotation? Try her Skillet-Roasted Chicken and Potatoes, Chicken in a Pot with Orzo or Cheddar Corn Chowder recipes: three of our favorite Ina-approved meals to kick-start fall and stay cozy throughout winter. And don’t forget dessert! We’re big fans of Garten’s Apple Pie Bars and Black & White Cookies as they’re perfect for sharing with the people we love all season long.
