Creamy Butternut Squash Red Lentils Soup

Updated: Aug 17, 2022

I love butternut squash, but I always have a hard time peeling and cutting it (honestly, I just don’t like prepping pumpkins). I like picking a big one and after cutting it, I freeze half of it and the other half I use it in my preparation, so the next time I want to make a recipe with butternut squash I know I have some in the freezer ready to go. After slicing the butternut squash in half, you are going to find the seeds, don’t throw them away! Scrape them out with a spoon, They are perfect to make and eat as a snack, add to salads or to this soup. To prepare the seeds first you need to wash them, pat dry well with paper towels, and then mix them with a little of oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder and paprika, place them on a baking sheet and roast in the oven until they are golden brown, I recommend tossing the seeds each few minutes. Let them cool before tasting them! When they are warm they won't be as crispy.

Servings: 8 cups Prep time: 15 mins Cooking time 20 mins + Total time: 35 mins

Ingredients:

Half butternut squash peeled and diced (about 3 cups of diced squash).

½ onion, diced

2 carrots, diced

2 celery sticks cut into slices

3 mini sweet peppers or half a red bell pepper in cubes

3 garlic cloves

1 cup red lentils

A little olive oil, avocado oil or butter

Broth or water

Salt and pepper

Preparation:

Peel and cut the squash into cubes
I froze half of the whole butternut squash cubes
In a pot, sauté all the vegetables with the oil
Add a little salt
Cover the vegetables with the broth or water
Add the lentils, stir
Cook until the lentils and all the vegetables are soft
Turn off the heat
Let it sit for a while, so it is not so hot when blending
Blend the soup
Taste and add salt and pepper to taste
Toppings that I like having with soup: cheese, a squeeze of lemon juice, fresh herbs, toasted seeds, croutons, a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. And maybe grilled cheese?