Wild Rice Soup with Butternut Squash and Broccoli

Made with roasted and pureed butternut squash and packed with broccoli, this wild rice soup is just what you need for the chilly months! It’s hearty, nourishing and gets an extra flavor boost from crispy bacon and creamy gorgonzola!

This nourishing soup is packed with so many good things: wild rice, roasted butternut squash, broccoli and a little gorgonzola and bacon to finish it off. It’s creamy, cozy and really just everything you could want in a soup! Serve it with a bit of crusty bread and you’ve got yourself a whole meal.

let’s make wild rice soup!

So let’s make the soup! You’ll start by roasting your butternut squash and then pureeing it in a food processor — this is where we’ll get the creaminess. I like to do this ahead of time (sometimes even a day or two in advance) so that making the soup is a breeze, but it’s definitely doable to make it as the soup is cooking.

Now cook up a few strips of bacon until crispy and set aside. Then add a bit of onion and garlic until aromatic. Toss in your wild rice and vegetable broth and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 40 minutes. Wild rice takes quite a while to cook so just let your pot simmer away — no need to lift the lid and check on it.

With your wild rice just about tender, we can finish off the soup! Stir in your broccoli florets and continue cooking just until the broccoli is tender (10 minutes).

Now stir in the butternut squash puree and add your finishing touches: a splash of apple cider vinegar, salt and pepper to taste, and a generous pinch of cayenne. Stir in some crumbled gorgonzola (which pairs unbelievably well with butternut squash) and crumble your crispy bacon over the top!

make it your own

Wild rice: It can be difficult to find wild rice that isn’t sold as part of a mix, but I’ve had luck finding it at Trader Joe’s and online. If you’re looking for a substitute, orzo pasta works really well in this soup! Just make sure to cook the orzo according to package instructions.

Veggies: To make this soup a little quicker, the butternut squash puree can be swapped out for canned pumpkin puree. And while broccoli makes an excellent addition, we sometimes just stir in a handful of spinach or kale instead. This soup can also easily be made vegetarian — just leave out the bacon and use a bit of olive oil to sautee your aromatics.

Spices: And for the spices, we just add a bit of salt, pepper and cayenne. About ¼ teaspoon of cayenne will add a bit of flavor and ½ teaspoon will give you just a bit of spiciness. If you don’t have cayenne, try adding a bit of smoked paprika for that extra flavor boost without too much heat.

Cheese: I know not everyone loves blue cheese, but the gorgonzola here really adds a bit of funky depth and balances out the sweetness coming from the butternut squash. If you’re still not convinced, you can leave it out altogether or try another type of cheese, such as cheddar or gruyere.

Looking for more warming soups and stews? Check out these recipes!

• leek and salmon soup
• belizean stew chicken
• mushroom barley soup
• misir wat | ethiopian lentil stew

wild rice soup with butternut squash and broccoli

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• Author: Brittney
• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
• Yield: 4-6

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Ingredients

• butternut squash 1 medium (1 kg)
• (or about 20 oz / 600 g of butternut squash puree)
• olive oil 1 tbsp
• bacon 4 strips
• diced yellow onion 1 medium
• minced garlic 3 cloves
• wild rice, rinsed 1 c (150 g)
• vegetable broth 6 c (1.5 l)
• broccoli florets 3 c (250 g)
• salt and pepper to taste
• cayenne ½ tsp
• apple cider vinegar 1 tbsp
• crumbled gorgonzola ⅓ c (45 g)

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Instructions

butternut squash puree

1. Preheat oven to 400 F (200 C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Cut the butternut squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt. Place on the baking sheet cut side down and bake for 45-50 minutes or until tender.
3. Once the squash is cool enough to handle, scoop out the flesh and transfer to a food processor. Blend until smooth.

wild rice soup

1. Heat a large pot over medium heat and cook the bacon until crispy. Remove and set aside.
2. Drain the skillet of all but one tablespoon of fat rendered from the bacon. Add the diced onion and cook until slightly golden (10 minutes).
3. Add the garlic and continue cooking an additional 2 minutes.
4. Add the wild rice, vegetable broth and a pinch of salt. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 40 minutes or until the rice is almost tender.
5. Stir in the broccoli, cover and cook an additional 10 minutes or until the broccoli and rice are tender.
6. Stir in the butternut squash puree, cayenne and apple cider vinegar.
7. Add the gorgonzola and stir until just melted.
8. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Crumble the bacon over the top.

Notes

Butternut squash puree: I prefer to make this ahead of time, but if you pop the squash in the oven right when you begin cooking it should be just about ready by the time you need it.

• Cuisine: global

Keywords: wild rice soup, butternut squash soup, broccoli soup

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