The flavors in this 21 Day Fix Coconut Curry Butternut Squash Soup go so beautifully together. It’ll be hard to believe that it’s super-healthy, low in calories and can even be made in your Instant Pot!
Hey readers! This post was updated on 10/25/17 with new Instant Pot directions! Because nobody wants to bother with peeling and chopping that pesky gourd!
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Happy Halloween! Ok, I know we still have a couple of weeks before the big day, but Halloween food is fun food and I wanted in on the action.
I’m curious to know how many of you out there are industrious enough to make your kids’ Halloween costumes? I do not fall under this category, but I secretly (I guess not so secretly) wish I did. Alas, anything to do with sewing or crafting is pretty much out of my wheelhouse. If you need someone to bake up some awesome Halloween cupcakes or purchase some ready-made game prizes for the school party, I’m your girl. Need someone to make a creepy bone wreath you saw on Pinterest? Well, I already #pinterestfailed at that two Halloweens ago.
I’d love to take credit for this spider web soup idea because I think it’s freaking adorable, but it wasn’t mine. I really don’t know whose it was though or I’d tell you. I saw it in a magazine so long ago that I can’t remember which one. It was a sour cream spider web sitting on tomato soup and I remembered thinking that it would be even cuter and more Halloween-ey on top of some yellowish-orange butternut squash soup 🙂
Butternut squash soup is really one of my favorite things on the planet. It’s the ultimate cold-weather comfort. It has this amazing velvety texture that that just says, “In this moment, life is absolutely perfect.” B.S. soup, you have my heart. Ok, so a different nickname might be in order. I’ll work on that. Anyway, I’ve had it and made it a million different ways, but this one is my absolute favorite. Probably because I’m a curry junkie. And coconut, oh the coconut!
Other great things about this soup:
- Soup-er easy! (I’m so sorry, sometimes I can’t help myself) – a handful of amazing ingredients in a pot, blended up, you just can’t beat it.
- The hardest part about making this soup is peeling/cutting the squash, but there are ways around this.
- You can buy the already peeled and cubed butternut squash from the produce department.
- You can cook your squash whole in the crock pot (4 hrs on high, no water needed!)
- If you have an Instant Pot, you can cook it whole in there too! Directions are in the recipe!
- Makes 6 servings, perfect for made-ahead lunches throughout the week.
- Counts as a green and 1/3 of a blue, again, perfect for lunch. If you’re extra hungry, even two servings is still more than reasonable in the container / calorie department.
This is how I cut my 3 1/2 lb squash to fit into my Instant Pot. I fit the carrots into the empty space towards the bottom left.
I kept the curry powder here to 3/4 of a teaspoon. For me, it was the perfect amount to still let the coconut flavor come through and give it a nice, warm heat. However, if you want to make it spicier, you can either use hot curry powder, extra mild (it still has a bit of heat to it), or as much cayenne pepper as you’d like.
When making the spider webs, don’t feel like they need to be perfect (said the girl who clearly messed hers up when she was in a rush). It’s for Halloween, it’s ok if things get a little messy 🙂 The spider webs would be a really fun thing to let kids in on, too, though I would definitely have some extra yogurt on hand. Also, I think this probably goes without saying, but this soup is amazing all season long, a dollop of the coconut-yogurt works too 😉
I really hope you guys try this one, I’m so in love with it!
Just FYI – this recipe has only been tested in the Instant Pot 6 quart duo – If you have an 8 qt, you may need to add more liquid.
21 Day Fix Coconut Curry Butternut Squash Soup {Instant Pot | Stove Top}
Ingredients
Soup:
- 1 tsp coconut oil
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 cup carrots, chopped (2 fat carrots UNCHOPPED for Instant Pot method)
- 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 4 cups butternut squash, peeled and cubed (about 1 medium; 3 - 3 1/2 lbs) (scrubbed but left whole for Instant Pot method)
- 2/3 cup canned coconut milk
- 3/4 tsp mild curry powder (or more if you like it spicier!)
Optional Spiderweb Topping (you may need slightly more or less depending on the size of the bowls you're using):
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt, 1% or fat free
- 2 1/2 Tbs canned coconut milk
Instructions
Stove Top Instructions:
- Heat a medium-large pot to medium heat. Add coconut oil, onions and carrots. Saute until vegetables have softened.
- Add broth and squash, cover and bring to a boil. Once boiling, remove lid and let simmer until squash is tender (if you can easily smash one against the side of the pan, they're ready). Add curry powder.
- In batches, puree soup in a blender, making sure you remove the center of the lid (and cover with a clean towel while blending!). Return to pot.
- Stir in 2/3 cup coconut milk and heat through if necessary. Portion soup into bowls.
Instant Pot Instructions:
- Cut the ends off of your butternut squash to fit into your IP (I had to cut another section off of the end of my 3 1/2 pounder - see photo). Place the IP trivet in your pot, add 1 cup of water, then place your squash pieces on top. Fit your carrots in around your squash pieces.
- Put on your lid, turn your knob to "sealing" and set to manual for 30 - 35 minutes (I did 35 for my 3 1/2 lb squash). When it's finished cooking, you can immediately turn your lid knob to "venting" for a quick release. Then you can check to make sure that it's completely soft before removing the trivet from the IP (if it isn't, set for another 5 minutes on manual). Remove the trivet and place on a cutting board to remove the skin, seeds and stringy insides of the squash. Discard those parts or roast the seeds if you like!
- Dump the water out of your pot, put the pot back in and turn on your saute function. Add the coconut oil and the chopped onion and cook until the onions have softened. Add the broth, curry powder, cooked carrots and the flesh of the squash to the pot and heat through.
- Add the coconut milk and blend, either using a stick blender or by blending in batches in a regular blender.
To make the spiderweb:
- In a small bowl, stir together the yogurt and 2 1/2 Tbs coconut milk. Put the mixture into a pastry bag or a ziplock bag and snip off the tip with a pair of kitchen shears. Make circles of yogurt in each bowl, then use a tooth pick to make lines going from the center to the outside of each bowl.
- If you really want to do it up, throw a clean plastic spider on top (real spiders not recommended).
Notes
21 Day Fix Container Counts Per Serving: 1 GREEN, 1/3 BLUE (1/6 TSP, 1/6 RED - I would only count these if I were having multiple servings, but it's up to you!)
3 Weight Watchers Freestyle Points: 3
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: Serving Size: 1 cupAmount Per Serving: Calories: 107 Total Fat: 5g
Want to follow this up with an adorable Halloween treat? Of course you do.
{Less Sugar} Mint Chocolate Chip Meringue Cookies
What if you don’t like coconut? Any substitute ideas?
You could either leave it out and add a bit more broth (the soup will still be really creamy without it) or you could sub in some unsweetened almond milk. 🙂 Also, just a note – if you’ve had curry in a Thai restaurant before, chances are there was coconut milk in it, so you may like it in this. Enjoy!
I am AMAZED at how good this soup is!! And even more amazed at how healthy it is. My grocery store sells frozen butternut squash in those microwave steamable bags so that made this super easy to whip up. I love the flavor combination of this soup with the curry! Delicious and filling. It reheats really well too, so I’m going to make another batch to eat for lunches with a small side salad…great way to get in those green containers and save the yellows for dinner and treats 🙂
Ah! This makes me so happy! So easy, right?! Especially with the frozen squash, you can’t beat it!
Do you need to use the trivet? I don’t have that piece but I have the instant pot! And I want to try this soup tonight!
Aww, Desirea! I’m so sorry I didn’t see this sooner! So weird that your IP didn’t come with the trivet, it should have! That being said, I think it would be completely fine without it! I hope you love it!
I love coconut curry everything, trying this for sure!
Me too! Hope you love it, Dana!
Thank you so much for including IP instructions! Love this- I’m going to try it for sure. I just roasted a butternut but it’s still sitting in my fridge, waiting for me to do something with it lol. THIS!!
Yay! Perfect! Yes, I’m working on testing a bunch of my older recipes to include IP instructions, love it!
Stunning presentation, Stephanie, The colors in this soup are amazing! I bet it’s so tasty, too 🙂
Thanks, Rahul!! That spiderweb is so easy! One of my all-time favorite soups 🙂
Is the yogurt/coconut sauce important to the flavor of the soup? Like, should I just mix it into the soup if I am just planning on eating the soup throughout the week or freezing it, or is this purely for decorative purposes and would I be better off just leaving it out?
Hi Robin! The yogurt is sort of the icing on the cake. It’s a great compliment to the soup, but the soup tastes delicious all on it’s own. Usually When I make it ahead, I do make the yogurt, but I put it in something separate and just put a dollop on top after I heat up the soup. Either way is fine though, great either way!
Can this soup be frozen? There are just 2 of us,
Yes, you can freeze it! It will likely separate a little upon defrosting, but stir it up and it’ll be good as new 🙂
I love butternut squash soup this time of year! I just posted a recipe recently with it and apple, however try as I might, I could not get those pretty yoghurt designs like you, amazing!
Aww, thanks, Abida! It was actually pretty easy (even though I messed mine up a little, ha!) The trick is to drag a toothpick from the center of the bowl to the outside of the bowl 🙂
OMGOSH. That yogurt spider web is freakin’ amazing. I’m planning on doing one with cheese for something later next week but this one is so awesome! Also, butternut squash is the best thing of life. I make like 5 different kinds constantly. This one sounds so good! Curry forever<3
Thanks, Amanda! Butternut squash IS the best thing ever. 🙂