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–+ servings

Roasted Feta and Butternut Squash Soup

This creamy and easy soup has it all, sweet and roasty butternut squash, melty and salty feta, and some crispy, seedy feta chips to round it all out. And the best part? It happens all in the oven, so it's a quick and easy meal to make, while still feeling healthy and elevated.
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Servings: 6 servings

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 1 medium butternut squash, 2 1/2 pounds, peeled and cubed
  • 1 garlic head, halved
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil , plus more for topping
  • 3 fresh sage leaves, plus more for topping
  • 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • Diamond Crystal kosher salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 (8-ounce) block of feta
  • 4 cups vegetable broth or stock
  • Chili oil of choice, for topping
For the feta seed crisps
  • 1 (8-ounce) block of feta or box of feta crumbles
  • 1 tablespoon caraway seeds
  • 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
  • 1 tablespoon fennel seeds
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Instructions 

  1. Position a rack to the bottom of the oven and preheat to 400°F. Add another rack to the top.
  2. In a large dutch oven, add the cubed butternut squash, the halved garlic, olive oil, sage leaves, red pepper flakes, and the block of feta. Season with a pinch of salt and a few big cracks of black pepper.
  3. Cover and add this to the bottom rack of the oven. Roast for 40-45 minutes or until the squash is softened.
  4. In another small bowl, crumble in the feta for the feta crisps. Add the seeds and olive oil and mix this together. Mash it into as much of a feta-seed paste as possible.
  5. Press the feta seed mixture onto a lined baking sheet, making it about half a centimeter thick. Add this to the top rack of the oven and roast for 25-30 minutes, or until the feta is a deep dark brown, and very crisp. Set aside, and when they are cool enough to handle, break them into chips.
  6. When the dutch oven is out of the oven, squeeze out the garlic cloves into the pot and discard the skin. Add everything from the pot into a high-powered blender, add the vegetable stock, and blend until smooth. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.
  7. If you'd like, add another glug of olive oil to a pan over medium heat. When the oil has had a few minutes to heat up, fry any extra sage leaves in the oil for 1-2 minutes, or until the sage is a shade darker and has stopped sizzling. Transfer to a paper towel to drain.
  8. To serve, spoon the soup into bowls, top with a few of the feta crisps, fried sage leaves, and a drizzle of chili oil.