Photo updated September 2012
I am finally getting out the Christmas decorations today. I know, I know – it’s already the 6th of December. Some people have theirs up right after Halloween, and I’ve waited until the 2nd week of December! The biggest reason is that I have been having a hard time dragging my pregnant belly out to the garage to dig for the boxes. The second reason is that we buy a fresh tree every year, and we are getting our tree tonight – hopefully – and really, it’s not decorated until you have a tree! I’m super excited, though, and can’t wait for it to feel like Christmas in my house.
One thing it has been feeling like around here is winter. The snow has finally melted off the ground in the last couple days, but it is still nice and cold outside. And when it gets cold, I always find myself gravitating towards soup! I’ve actually made this twice in the last month, I liked it so much. The first time was for a church lunch, and I got tons of compliments on it. Right before I took it, I tasted it, and almost decided to just stay home with it – me and my spoon!! But I did take it, and it was completely emptied. I needed a bowl of it to myself, so I made it the next week for us to enjoy at home. This is seriously delicious. Maybe my favorite soup of the winter this year – and the winter has just started!!
- 2 tablespoons butter
- ½ cup chopped onion
- 1 (2-lb.) butternut squash, peeled and cubed
- 2 cups water
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ¼ teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 4 chicken-flavor bullion cubes
- 1 (8-oz) package cream cheese, cubed
- Melt the butter in a skillet. Add the onion and cook until translucent, stirring occasionally.
- In a 3½ – 4-quart slow cooker, combine the onion and all remaining ingredients except the cream cheese.
- Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.
- About 40 minutes before serving, place about ⅓ of the mixture at a time in a food processor or blender and blend on high speed until smooth. Return the mixture to the slow cooker.
- Add the cubed cream cheese and stir. Cover and cook on low an additional 25 to 30 minutes or until the cheese is melted, stirring with a whisk until smooth.
- ---------------
- adapted from Pillsbury Slow Cooker Recipes
A delicious looking soup!
Cheers,
Rosa
As crazy as I cam about butternut squash, I don't make soup with it often enough. This one sounds awesome. I've never seen a version that has cream cheese- it must make it so creamy.
Enjoy your decorating!
Glad to hear your decorations are up and putting you in the Christmas spirit! This soup certainly makes me wish for a little snow here in SoCal (though unlikely)! It looks wonderful and so delicious, Deborah. Great job!
i LIKE the sound of that soup, especially with the cream cheese, YUM!
It's really getting frigid here as well! Definitely soup season…specifically…butternut squash soup. Delicious!
i want to take a spoon and dig into that soup! so interesting that its got cream cheese in it…never thought it could be used for soups!
haha have fun xmas tree decorating! i havent got mine out yet!
We just got our tree up this weekend, though no outdoor lights yet, its been too cold! Love the idea of cream cheese in this
Brad would eat soup every day, and this is a nice switch from his favorite, tomato.
And I finally got the ornaments on our tree today! (Though we've had the tree almost two weeks. Sad. I know.)
the ratio of squash to cream cheese and the lovely pale color of this soup lead me to believe that it is, without a doubt, the best squash soup ever.
Any tips on peeling the butternut squash? They are so intimidating to me with their giant hard shells…
@Marta, I usually just use a vegetable peeler. Sometimes I have to go over it twice, but it works!!
How much chicken broth would you suggest using in place of 4 bouillon cubes and 2 cups water? Also planning to double the recipe to have some to freeze!
I would just use 2 cups of broth.
Great recipe! I used chicken stock instead of broth for more flavor, added 2 tbsp of minced garlic, and some additional spices. Came out sweet and savory. Love the rich texture!
I found a 2lb container of already peeled and cubed butternut squash at Costco…which is what I used. Way more convenient for me