Print It| Add to Favorites| | Pin It

Healthy: Our criteria for healthy recipes include (per serving): less than 550 calories for dinner; 5 g or less saturated fat; sodium mg less than the total calorie count; cholesterol 300 mg or less; minimal added sweeteners.
Recipes that fall squarely within these criteria are marked with a green icon; those that are slightly outside them for one nutrient get a yellow icon.

Butternut Squash Soup with Apple & Bacon

by Jill Hough

read reviews (27)

Smoky bacon, herby sage, and sweet apple give this squash soup layers of flavor.

Use the Creamy Vegetable Soups Recipe Maker to create your own velvety soup, or use the Hearty Bean & Vegetable Soup Recipe Maker if chunky soups are more your style.

Serves 6-7 Yields about 6-1/2 to 7 cups.

To learn more, read the article:
Simple Soups for Fall

Get a quick and delicious recipe every day with our FREE Make it Tonight newsletter Make it Tonight Recipe

bacon butternut squash apples more more

8 slices bacon, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch strips
2-1/2 lb. butternut squash (about 1 medium), peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch dice (to yield about 6 cups)
1 small Granny Smith or other tart-sweet apple, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2-inch dice (to yield about 1 cup)
1-1/2 Tbs. finely chopped fresh sage leaves
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
4 cups homemade or low-salt chicken or vegetable broth

In a 5-quart or larger stockpot set over medium heat, cook the bacon, stirring occasionally, until crisp and golden, 8 to 10 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels.

Increase heat to medium high. Add the squash to the pot with the bacon fat and cook until lightly browned, 4 to 6 minutes (resist the urge to stir it too often or it won’t brown). Stir in the apple, sage, salt, and pepper and cook for about 4 minutes (you’ll see more browning occur on the bottom of the pot than on the vegetables). Add the broth, scraping up any browned bits in the pot with a wooden spoon. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce the heat to maintain a simmer, and cook until the squash and apples are very soft, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool somewhat.

Add about half the bacon to the soup and purée, using a stand or immersion blender (you’ll need to work in batches if using a stand blender). Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed. Reheat the soup and garnish each serving with the remaining bacon.

nutrition information (per serving):
Size : based on seven servings; Calories (kcal): 130; Fat (g): 4; Fat Calories (kcal): 35; Saturated Fat (g): 1.5; Protein (g): 7; Monounsaturated Fat (g): 1.5; Carbohydrates (g): 19; Polyunsaturated Fat (g): 0.5; Sodium (mg): 370; Cholesterol (mg): 10; Fiber (g): 4;

photo: Scott Phillips

From Fine Cooking 74 , pp. 67

November 1, 2005

user reviews

Rate this Recipe

by mmeckstr, 9/29/2012I followed the recipe almost exactly, except I only used 4 pieces of bacon, and it was amazing! My husband who doesn't even like soup was raving about it. It was beautiful, thick and creamy, just like the photo. I will defiantly make this again, it's perfect for fall.

by kindred, 9/27/2012I followed the recipe exactly and it turned out a little bland. I added a some brown sugar and cinnamon to help the flavor out a bit. Next time I'll roast the squash and add a shallot.

by Neophytecook, 12/23/2011I added 1 finely chopped shallot to the apple mixture. I also substituted homemade beef stock for the other stock and it made the soup richer tasting. Fabulous recipe!

by WorthiSweets, 11/26/2011I made this as a starter for Thanksgiving dinner for my parents and grandparents. It was a huge hit and everybody loved it! I don't find the bacon at all overwhelming, and it's probably one of my favorite starter-soup recipes.

by emvlle, 11/22/2011Just finished making this. Very disappointed. The browning gave the final product a dull tan color. There is very little flavor - certainly nothing distinctive. Actually looks and tastes like turkey gravy. Yuck.

by twilightsummers, 9/18/2011Like other reviewers, I added onion, garlic, and curry powder. Also added a spoonful of molasses. I didn't feel that the bacon overwhelmed everything. In fact, I wished I had had more for the topping! In any event, this is a good basic formula for making your own variations on this delicious soup!

by gmkathy2, 9/15/2011Excellent soup. I used pre-cut squash for convenience and followed the directions except added 3-4 chopped shallots with the apples. After pureeing added a couple shakes of curry and about 1-2 TBL real maple syrup. I left ours thick and slightly lumpy which is the way we like it. Will definitely make this again. Yum!

by dwarfjr, 12/15/2010I love butternut squash soup, but I didn't care for this recipe at all. Bacon isn't a welcome addition, and even though I threw out all but a couple of tablespoons of the fat and used canola oil instead the bacon flavor just took over the soup. Would not make again.

by SummerDream, 11/19/2010Outstanding! Rave reviews from my family for this soup. The bacon on top really adds a fun touch to the soup. I only used half the bacon since I planned on freezing the other half and others said they had to much grease. It was perfect and definitely a keeper.

by FloridaChef, 10/26/2010Truly one of the best fall soups you can make! The only better butternut squash soup I've had was at a reasturant in L.A. which was a little earthier.

by Bigfatmomma, 10/24/2010I made this and we loved it but I must confess I strayed from the text I added 1/2 an onion and 1/2 Tbs garlic when I was sautéing the apples. I used homemade chicken stock. I also served it with a dollop of sour cream. It was divine!!!!! Next time I will puree 1/2 of it and then I will mash the other half with a potato masher, I like a bit more texture in my soups. Also I will brown more bacon and set aside to garnish with. This is such an autumnal dish. Will deff make again, this one is going into the recipe box.

by lesgloe, 10/19/2010This soup makes me feel like a gourmet cook! :-) It turned out so great. I doctored it up with a little dark brown sugar and a few pinches of corriander. I also browned the squash in batches like others suggested and added a bit more broth at the end. I served it with a dollop of sour cream too. I actually think that a few more strips of bacon for garnishing the soup would be nice as well.

by purslane, 9/19/2010delicious! i made this today, and agree with the other reviewers-browning the squash was a bit of a challenge, it didn't quite have enough room to spread out in the pan to brown. also, next time, i will keep some extra chicken broth on hand since after blending it, it was a bit thicker than i expected. next time, i'll be prepared! but there will definitely be a next time.

by curryleaf, 2/12/2010Delicious! Agreed that this is a very bacon-y soup--but it's sure to win over the most ardent veggie hater.

by Kathleen_G, 2/16/2009Yummy, definitely a do-over. Browning was a challenge, doing it in matches would be better. We used maple bacon and it was very good, but removed all the bacon before adding the other ingredients and only added in the requested bacon at the puree stage. There wasn't extra greasiness.

by hcspoon, 1/4/2009I've made this twice now and it's a favorite with the DH. The second time around I poured out all of the bacon grease from the pan except for a tablespoon. That reduced the fat content a bit and toned down the bacon flavor a little bit. I added some canola oil to replace the grease and browned the butternut squash in batches so they would all brown nicely. Other than that, I followed the rest of the recipe.

by JuliaGoolia, 12/28/2008So delicious! I will definitely make this again. Made two batches for Christmas dinner and it was quite a hit.

by anachman, 12/3/2008

by Jason123, 12/1/2008This is a fabulous and impressive soup. Every time I make it there are raves. Depending on the starchiness of the squash, it sometimes needs a little more chicken broth. Really delicious and easy to make.

by jng000, 11/30/2008I enjoyed this soup. It was a nice change of pace from the average soup and the bacon gave a good textural contrast.

by ClaudiaL, 10/3/2008Yummy and easy but I thought it needed an extra kick. I added a small amount of ground cumin and coriander at the last step (reheating the soup).

by rbasey, 3/16/2008Easy and absolutely delicious. Add a little more chicken broth if you want a looser soup.

by chefc, 11/20/2007I used only the meaty parts of a no-nitrate bacon. I then added some olive oil before putting in the cubed squash. I also put all the bacon in the soup before putting my immersion blender to it. Other than that I followed the recipe exactly. I sent the recipe to my sister and father telling them this was possibly the best soup I've ever eaten.

by LOcook, 11/10/2007SO good!

by kathymcmo, 11/3/2007I dunno, this came out a little too heavy on the bacon flavor, which seemed to overpower the squash, sage and apple flavors. Might work better with fewer than 8 slices of bacon.

join the conversation