Roasted Red Pepper and Butternut Squash Soup

PREP TIME: 40 minutes     COOK TIME: 30 minutes     SERVES: 4-6

My sister Olivia served me this delicious soup whilst I was up visiting her in Scotland many years ago and I loved it! (Thanks Olivia!) 

I've since made a few BRIT BEET tweaks and recently served it at a special family dinner; it got rave reviews. I love it's unique flavour twist thanks to the roasted red peppers, plus the colour is really inviting. It's a really a beautiful Fall soup. 

Nutritional Bites

  • Butternut squash has a hefty amount of fiber helping to keep our waists trim and skin glowing.

  • It also has a high amount of vitamin C that helps boost our immune systems; maybe that's why ingenious Mother Nature makes it available come Fall, when the colds and flus hit.

Ingredients

3 red peppers
1 large butternut squash
2 large carrots, roughly chopped
1 large yellow onion
2 small cloves of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons of butter, coconut or olive oil
2-3 cups of vegetable or chicken stock, depending on how thick you like your soups

Let's Cook!

  1. Put the oven on at 400F. Cut the red peppers in halves and take out the little pips and any white pith (which is quite bitter). Place the peppers on a baking tray and bake for 20 minutes. Once cooked, pop them in a glass jar with a lid, to cool down. Remove charred skin and put aside.

  2. Whilst the peppers are doing their stuff in the oven, roughly dice up the onion, carrots and squash. With the squash being so tricky to handle, I find it easiest to cut the top and bottom off and then place it cut side down on my chopping board so that it does not roll around. Then I take a sharp knife and shave off the skin starting from the top and working down. Once the peel is off, I slice downwards into thick strips and then place these flat strips on the board and cut into smaller 1-2" pieces. You don’t have to be exact since you are going to puree the whole thing up anyway.

  3. Heat the oil in a large pan on the medium heat, then add the chopped onion and allow to cook for a few minutes.

  4. Next add the squash, carrots and garlic, cooking for a few more minutes, then pour in the stock.

  5. Bring to a gentle boil, before turning down to simmer for 10-15 minutes, just to soften the veggies. Lastly, add in the roasted red peppers.

  6. In a high-speed blend, puree up the soup till smooth and creamy. Season with salt and pepper.

  I usually serve the soup piping hot with a sprinkle of  chopped chives and a swirl or dab or my Sweet Maple Cashew Cream - simply delicious!