Freezer Recipe: Butternut Squash Soup - Shaping Up To Be A Mom (2024)

As a Canadian gal, you wouldn’t think I would be particularly enthused that cooler weather is approaching, and even less at the idea of freezer cooking, since I basically live in a freezer for half the year. But for some reason, I adore fall and it gets me all geared up to make ginormous batches of one of my favorite easy freezer recipes – Butternut Squash Soup – to fill up everyone’s bellies on days where I’d rather be cozied up with a blanket than hunched over a stove.

Freezer Recipe: Butternut Squash Soup - Shaping Up To Be A Mom (1)

One thing that’s fun about butternut squash soup is that it’s easy to put your own spin on it. A while back, I found this handy guide to Butternut Squash Soup variations at Paleo Pot and use it as a starting point when I want to get creative. My favorite variation includes bacon as a garnish! Here is how I prep it to store in the freezer.

Bacon Butternut Squash Soup

These quantities will give you one batch of soup that will yield about 6 servings. Feel free to multiply and make a few batches at once – it will save you a ton of time!

Ingredients for freezing day:

  • 1 large butternut squash (about 6 cups)
  • 3 carrots
  • 1 apple (I just use whichever variety has been hanging out in my crisper a little too long)
  • 5 cloves of garlic
  • ½ tsp chipotle powder
  • ½ lb of bacon
  • 1 – 2 large freezer bags (1 bag is a tight fit)
  • 1 small freezer bag or sandwich bag

Ingredients for serving day:

  • 1 can coconut milk
  • 2 cups chicken broth

Before you touch anything else, preheat your oven to 350 and line a cookie sheet with foil. The foil is not mandatory, but trust me, you’ll be happy you did this. Lay all of the bacon flat on the cookie sheet and then pop it into the oven for 20-25 minutes until it’s nice and crisp.

While the bacon is busy making your house smell delicious, get to work peeling that squash. I’m really not a fan of peeling butternut squash, so that’s why I try to peel a few at once so I don’t have to deal with it again for a long time. Once you’re done peeling, scoop out and discard all of the seeds and cube the squash. It doesn’t have to be anywhere near perfect. Peel, core and cube your apple next, and then peel and slice your carrots and your garlic.

Now that you have a huge mountain of veggies, you’ll want to stuff them all into a large freezer bag. This is a whole lot of veggies, so you may need a second bag, especially if you’re like me and your cubes are more like big chunks. Now throw in your chipotle powder.

By now, your bacon should be cooked and likely cool enough to handle. Chop it up into small pieces. I won’t tell anyone if you eat a piece. Or seven. Now put your chopped bacon into the small freezer bag and seal it, and then place that bag inside the large freezer bag with all the veggies and seal that one. Label your bag and throw it in the freezer.

Fast forward to that day where you don’t feel like cooking and are feeling a kind of crummy that only a nice bowl of soup can fix. Pull out your bag from the freezer. Now you have two options:you can cook this over the stove or you can use your crockpot. Obviously, your crockpot will take quite a bit longer, so keep that in mind.

Freezer Recipe: Butternut Squash Soup - Shaping Up To Be A Mom (2)

Open the bag, pull out the small freezer bag with the bacon and put it in your fridge. Next, you can empty out all of the veggies into a large stock pot or crock pot. Add in one can of coconut milk and 2 cups of chicken broth. I like to make chicken broth and freeze it in my silicone muffin pan which makes it easy to store and portion out and I avoid needing to run to the store to buy some. Who am I kidding? In a pinch, I’ve been known to use plain old water in place of broth. Shhhh!

Bring everything to a boil and then simmer it until all the veggies are nice and soft. Now, if you’re like my husband, you will likely want to eat it like that right away. I don’t recommend that. You see, this next step is where all of the magic happens and the flavors mingle to make butternut squash soup the wonderful comfort food that it is. If you have an immersion blender, use it to blend your soup directly in the pot until you get to a consistency you like. But do make sure to get most of the big chunks so that the flavors even out. If you only have a regular blender, please be careful – blending hot soups can cause a bit of an explosion and you don’t want that. I used my Vitamix, which lucky for me, is designed to blend hot stuff without leaving your kitchen looking like a high school cafeteria after a food fight.

Freezer Recipe: Butternut Squash Soup - Shaping Up To Be A Mom (3)

Ladle some soup into a bowl and grab your bacon from the fridge. Sprinkle it delicately over your soup. Laugh at yourself for thinking you would only take a few pieces and throw in a large handful. Grab a spoon and enjoy!

Looking for a few more easy freezer recipes?

Sylvie loves to blog about simple living and easy freezer recipes at Cheeriolala.com. She lives in Mississauga, Canada with her musician husband and two amazing daughters who are always great sports when it’s time to test out her latest poop recipe.

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Freezer Recipe: Butternut Squash Soup - Shaping Up To Be A Mom (2024)

FAQs

Is it OK to freeze butternut squash soup? ›

Can butternut squash soup be frozen? Yes, the soup can be frozen, without the cream, for up to 3 months. Defrost in the refrigerator for 12 hours and then reheat on the stovetop over medium heat until hot. Once heated through, add the cream and bring to a simmer before serving.

How to make store bought butternut squash soup taste better? ›

Sizzle a pinch of Madras curry powder, garam masala, equal parts ground cumin and smoked paprika, or a sprig of rosemary in your saucepan, then add butternut squash soup. Thyme, crushed red pepper flakes, and bay leaves work well with mushroom soup.

How long can butternut squash soup last in the fridge? ›

Store butternut squash soup in an airtight container or lidded glass jar for three to five days. If you want to preserve it for even longer, you can transfer it to the freezer to store for up to three months. Let it thaw in the refrigerator for 24 hours before reheating and serving.

How do you fix bland butternut squash soup? ›

Sex it up with spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, cardamom, rosemary, sage, thyme, bay leaf. and use some brown sugar, maple syrup, or honey. Roast the squash first. This is the only recipe that I've ever used for butternut squash soup, and it's neither watery nor bland.

Should you thaw frozen butternut squash before cooking? ›

Because frozen squash is already peeled and cut for you, all you have to do is season it and throw it into the oven, eliminating at least 20 minutes of work.

How do you freeze butternut squash without it being mushy? ›

More good news: It does fine whether frozen raw or cooked. And the fact that yours has been cut into small chunks is no problem. You can freeze raw butternut squash pieces in the same way you would freeze berries: Place them on a baking sheet, spaced out so they don't touch each other, and freeze until very firm.

Why is my butternut squash bland? ›

If you pick too early, the flesh will not be fully developed and the squash will lack flavor and not be that wonderfully vegetal sweet that is the wonder of butternut, honeynut, delicata, acorn, pumpkin and kabocha, among dozens of other winter squash.

How do you make soup taste richer? ›

"If your broth is lacking in savory richness, try adding roasted onion, tomato paste, mushrooms, seaweed, soy sauce, or miso. These ingredients add umami flavor and depth to broth," she says. The choice of ingredient depends on the recipe, though.

Why does my butternut soup taste sour? ›

What happened? It's no coincidence that the butternut squash soup had fermented, alcoholic notes. Indeed, fermented rice turns out to be the culprit here. Rice is high in starch, which is relatively easy to ferment.

What is the No 1 soup in the world? ›

According to the Taste Atlas Awards, the international food database, the Filipino favorite, Sinigang, is hailed as the best soup in the world.

How can you tell if a butternut squash has gone bad? ›

Keep your eye out for any brown spots or blemishes; these can indicate the start of spoiling. Any soft spots or slimy areas are also a sign that your squash has gone bad. Old squash tends to have soft flesh, leathery skin, and a hollow feel. And, of course, any spots of mold mean it's time to toss your squash.

Can butternut squash soup go bad? ›

How long can you keep butternut squash soup? This Butternut Squash Soup will last about 4-5 days in the refrigerator. As always, use common sense and if it doesn't smell right, then throw it out.

How do you add depth to butternut squash soup? ›

Butternut Squash Soup Ingredients

Onion, celery, carrots, and potatoes: These vegetables give body and depth of flavor to the soup, without overwhelming the squash. Once the vegetables are tender, you may use an immersion blender or blend them in batches using a standing blender to achieve a smooth, creamy texture.

Is butternut squash soup a laxative? ›

Butternut can work as a laxative. In some people butternut can cause diarrhea. Diarrhea can increase the effects of warfarin and increase the risk of bleeding.

How do you fix too much garlic in butternut squash soup? ›

Add other flavorful ingredients like those already in the soup to help balance the flavour. You could try simmering the soup for a while which may mellow out the garlic flavour. In future be careful about adding too much of an ingredient as you taste; as you have found it's much easier to add than to take away.

Does cooked butternut squash freeze well? ›

When cooked, the best way to freeze winter squash is as a purée, which holds up well once thawed. And the best method is to portion the puréed squash, then freeze for later. Purées can be frozen in ice cube trays, muffin tins, and in small portions (about 1/2 cup) on a parchment or wax paper-lined baking sheet.

Does freezing butternut squash change the texture? ›

Butternut squash freezes really well when pureed. It makes the freezing process more straightforward and also means that the texture isn't affected once thawed.

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