Roasted Butternut Squash and Cauliflower Soup (GF)

It has been over a month since I last posted. As summer winds down and the vacations and weddings begin to slow, I hope to carve out more kitchen time. In fact, I am eagerly awaiting open-window baking weather, when my oven doesn’t require a complementary air conditioner on full blast.

Despite this weekend’s hot weather, I had the urge to make soup – and for whatever reason, I woke up the next day with a cold and in serious need of a bowl of comforting, creamy soup. Talk about foresight!

I have included the recipe below, though as with all of my favorite recipes, it’s easily edited based on what you have around the house. I’m all for the roasted vegetables+liquids+blend equation! I added in a few tablespoons of Parmesan, but you could easily skip the cheese for a vegan/dairy-free soup.

Ingredients:

1 large yellow onion

1 medium head of cauliflower, trimmed and cleaned

1 medium butternut squash

7 oz or half a can of coconut milk

1 cup of water

1/2 cup of raw pepitas

Olive oil, sea salt, pepper

Optional: 3 tbsp of shredded Parmesan cheese, truffle oil for a drizzle on top

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Prep your vegetables for roasting by slicing your onions in large strips (and removing the outer skin). Slice the cauliflower into steaks – about 1 inch slivers. Place the onion and cauliflower on a large roasting pan and drizzle lightly with olive oil. Use your hands to mix everything so that your veggies are evenly coated, then top with a few shakes of sea salt and pepper.

Slice off both ends of the squash, remove the skin, and scoop out the seeds. Here’s a page on how to easily prep your squash. Once prepped, slice your squash into large chunks and place on a new roasting pan with a few drizzles of oil. Use your hands to make sure the squash is evenly coated with oil, then top with salt and pepper.

Roast your veggies until all three can be easily pierced with a fork – about 30 minutes.

In a large sauce pan, combine your roasted veggies, coconut milk, and water and use an immersion blender to fully smooth everything together. Add in 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil, a few more shakes of sea salt, Parmesan (optional) and fresh cracked pepper. Warm on low heat.

Meanwhile, place a small drizzle of olive oil in a saute pan, then pour in your pepitas. Turn heat on low, add a shake of salt, and toast until the seeds turn golden.

Once your soup has been warmed for 15-20 minutes, serve with a drizzle of truffle oil and top with toasted pepitas.