Day 71: Cinnamon Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

The weather is getting slightly cooler here in sunny FL, not that the temperature ever stopped me from making a yummy soup. I'm a big fan of butternut squash soup but it's actually been really hard to find a really well balanced soup. One that's flavorful but doesn't have too much garlic and that is all bursting with flavor but well balanced. Leave it to Skinnytaste to find the perfect blend of ingredients! This is the first time I've ever made anything with coconut milk and let me just tell you, it won't be the last. I didn't add anything extra to this recipe because of the new to me ingredients and since it was my first time making this recipe. The hubby gave two thumbs up and I'll definitely will be making this again! 

*Ingredients

40 ounces peeled and seeded butternut squash, cut into 1 1/2 inch cubes, from 1 whole squash

3/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

6 TBS sweetened coconut flakes

1 TBS coconut oil

1/4 cup minced shallots

2 1/4 cups Pacific organic vegetable broth, plus more as needed

1 cup plus 2 TBS light canned coconut milk

3/4 tsp kosher salt

black pepper, to taste

*Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Put the squash on a large baking sheet. Toss with the cinnamon and nutmeg, cover with foil, and roast until tender, 40-50 minutes. Let cool. (reduce oven temp to 350 degrees).

Spread the coconut on a baking sheet and toast in the oven, stirring every 2 minutes, until golden, 6-8 minutes. Let cool.

Heat a large nonstick pot over medium heat. Add the coconut oil and shallots and cook, stirring, until tender, 5 minutes.

Add the roasted squash to the pot with shallots. Add the broth and 1 cup of the coconut milk and simmer about 5 minutes. Using an immersion blender or a regular blender in batches, puree the soup until smooth. Add more broth if needed and simmer for 2-3 more minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

To serve, ladle the soup into 6 serving bowls and top each with 1 TBS tasted coconut and 1 tsp coconut milk. 

**To save time and effort you can buy pre cut and cleaned squash