Butternut Squash Soup with Crispy Sage & Bacon

Butternut Squash Soup with Crispy Sage and Bacon

McIlrath Farms Produce + Salt & Stone Recipe

• 1-2 tablespoons olive oil

• 4-6 leaves fresh sage

• 4 pieces center-cut bacon diced into thin strips

• 1 medium sweet onion diced

• 1 honey crispy apple diced

• 1 carrot diced

• 2 cloves garlic minced

• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme

• 1 bay leaf

• 3/4 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

• 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley

• about 8 cups peeled and diced butternut squash

• 1 32-ounce container organic chicken stock or bone broth

• 1/4 cup low-fat sour cream or creme fraiche** (optional)

In a large Dutch oven heat olive oil over medium heat. Add bacon to the pot and stir constantly until the bacon cooks through. Add sage leaves to the pot and cook with the bacon for 2 minutes. Turn the heat off to the pot and using a slotted spoon, remove sage and bacon transferring to a paper-towel lined plate. Set aside.

Leave bacon grease in the pot unless it’s more than about 2 tablespoons. Drain excess grease and return pot to stove. Add the onion, apple, and carrot to the pot cooking over medium heat until onion is translucent, about 8 minutes. Add butternut squash to the pot along with the thyme and bay leaf, stirring often. Add chicken stock to the pot and simmer on low for 30 minutes.

Using an immersion blender or regular blender, work in batches pulsing the soup mixture until desired texture. Make sure to remove bay leaf before blending soup. Pour soup back into the pot and stir in nutmeg and parsley. Taste soup and add additional salt and pepper if needed. Stir in sour cream. To serve, crumble fried sage over bacon pieces. Ladle soup into bowls and garnish with crispy sage and bacon pieces. Serves 6.

*If you decide to use chicken sausage, feel free to stir into soup instead of using it as a garnish. Also, the sour cream is completely optional. The soup doesn’t NEED it, so feel free to skip it if you prefer.

https://www.thesaltandstone.com/blog/2020/11/13/creamy-butternut-squash-bisque