This Copycat Panera Squash Soup tastes just like the original, but I made it a bit healthier!
Remember last week when I was talking about my homemade mild curry powder and I said I really truly made it for this soup? Well, here it is!
We were at a church event not too long ago and my pastor’s wife asked me if I had a squash soup recipe on my site. I said yes I have a creamy butternut squash soup with smoked paprika, and a really old post about squash soup with sage. But she was looking specifically for a copycat Panera squash soup.
I don’t blame her – it is delicious!
I made efforts to reduce the calorie content a bit while still keeping the flavors rich and slightly indulgent. I think I found a good balance, but if you’re looking for an exact replica, feel free to add more butter, cream, and sugar.
If you read the recipe closely, you’ll see this squash soup also contains carrots and pumpkin. They give it extra sweetness and depth of flavor. If you don’t have pumpkin or don’t want to add pumpkin, just use a little less vegetable broth. Remember you can always add more at the end to make it thinner but it’s more difficult to make it thicker.
I’d recommend using carrots with the squash because they really do add great natural sweetness, and they help achieve the beautiful color of the soup. Plus, Panera squash soup also has carrots in it.
I garnished my Copycat Panera Squash Soup recipe with roasted pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds). Their crunch and color add a nice contrast, don’t you think? You could also garnish it with chopped, fresh herbs like sage or parsley, or homemade croutons.
Important note: This soup calls for two cups of apple cider, NOT APPLE CIDER VINEGAR. If you can’t find apple cider (sometimes it’s hard to find if it’s not fall), use a natural (100% juice) apple juice. If you use vinegar by accident, your soup will NOT turn out and will definitely NOT taste like Panera’s.
PS: This isn’t my first rodeo with making a Panera copycat – make sure to check out my Copycat Panera Mac and Cheese! People LOVE it!
Copycat Panera Squash Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion, diced (about ¾ cup)
- 2 pounds chopped butternut squash (about 6 heaping cups)
- 3 small carrots, chopped (about 1 cup)
- 3-4 cups vegetable broth
- 2 cups apple cider or apple juice (do NOT use apple cider vinegar)
- 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- dash of nutmeg
- 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 ounces low-fat (neufchatel) cream cheese
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar, more to taste
- salt to taste
- heavy cream, optional
Instructions
- In a large pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onions and saute until translucent, stirring frequently.1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, 1 small yellow onion, diced
- Add squash, carrots, vegetable broth, apple cider, and spices.2 pounds chopped butternut squash , 3 small carrots, chopped, 3-4 cups vegetable broth, 2 cups apple cider or apple juice, 1/2 teaspoon curry powder, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, dash of nutmeg
- Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until squash and carrots are soft. Remove from heat and add pumpkin puree, butter, cream cheese and brown sugar. Puree with a hand (stick) blender or in batches in a normal blender. Blend until very smooth.1/2 cup pumpkin puree, 2 tablespoons butter, 2 ounces low-fat (neufchatel) cream cheese, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, more to taste
- Taste soup and add salt as desired. You may also add extra brown sugar or honey to achieve a taste closer that of Panera’s. You can also add a little heavy cream if you want a more decadent soup. If desired, add more vegetable broth to thin soup.salt to taste, heavy cream, optional
- Return to burner over medium-low heat, if needed to heat the soup back up, and then serve immediately.
Notes
- If you want it to be just like Panera squash soup – add more brown sugar and/or honey to taste. Adding more cream will also give it a richer flavor.
- This soup calls for two cups of apple cider, NOT APPLE CIDER VINEGAR. If you can’t find apple cider (sometimes it’s hard to find if it’s not fall), use a natural (100% juice) apple juice. If you use vinegar by accident, your soup will NOT turn out and will definitely NOT taste like Panera’s.
- To reduce sodium, use low sodium or no salt added vegetable broth.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did You Make This?Share a comment and rating below! I love hearing what you think!
Just made it this morning and had it for lunch! Delicious! I bought an emulsifier specifically for this- Definately worth it. I made the recipe exactly as stated with no changes- perfect- My 90 year old father-in-law has a treat headed his way today! Thank you for a great recipe!!
Hi Susan,
I’m so glad to hear that you like it! So sweet of you to bring some to your FIL. Thanks for taking the time to come back and leave a comment!
Can’t believe how perfect this turned out! I bought everything PRE-chopped, and it was easy peasy!! SO YUMMY! SAVING SO MUCH $$$$!
Oh good! I’m so happy to hear that! Love your shortcut of buying pre-cut!
Just wondering if you have any feedback on making this in a crockpot. Haven’t seen many comments posted about this. Looking forward to trying this as Panera Autumn Squash soup is my favorite. Thinking it will save money by making this at home ;0)
I haven’t heard yet but I think it would work really well! Let me know if you try it!
I did not get a chance to make the recipe here as of yet! I did, however, have a container of Oprah’s oh so good squash soup left-over from a sale I scored along with a coupon. I am not crazy about Oprah’s version, so I needed to doctor it up! My favorites are Panera, and even more so, a local grocery chain, Market Basket/Demoula’s in Massachusetts, puts out an Awesome Autumn Squash Soup, my fave. Since I’m home sick today, I only have the left-over Oprah’s soup and went searching the internet for spices to add to suit me better. I came across this site. This is what I did! I added a bit of pumpkin pie spice, cayenne pepper, artificial sweetener, salt and a bit of CoffeeMate Pumpkin Creamer. NOT SO BAD! In a pinch! Yes, embrace being flexible!
So smart! I’m glad my recipe was helpful! :)
This soup is delicious! I’ve made it several times and my husband and 3 teenaged boys gobble it up. So nice on a chilly day!
So happy to hear that everyone liked it! Thanks for taking the time to come back and leave a comment! :)
Only change/addition was to add freshly ground WHITE pepper. Oh, and I substituted half and half for the heavy cream because I had it on hand.
So glad you liked this recipe, Linda! Thanks for taking the time to come back and leave a comment!
Wow, what a wonderful tasty panera soup. I am going to add this recipe to my neighborhood ‘Diner on Monday’ cooking day. I am looking forward to try more of your recipes. Thanks a lot.
I’m so happy to hear that you liked it, Erik! Thanks for taking the time to come back and leave a comment!
It’s perfect! It’s yummy! I made it! I made mine dairy free. I substituted the butter and cream cheese with vegan butter and vegan cream cheese. It tasted the same as Panera’s. I like also that you don’t have to roast the vegetables before you actually make the soup. Thank you for the recipe.
I’m so happy to hear that you liked this recipe! Thanks for taking the time to come back and leave a comment and your feedback!
Just made this and it was delicious! The best butternut squash soup I’ve ever had actually
Hi Holly, I’m so happy to hear that! I’m glad you liked it – thank you for taking the time to come back and leave a comment!
What do you believe the conversion for the squash would be from chopped to puréed? I’ve already prepared mine from the garden but want to try this recipe. Thank you!
I’ve never used pureed squash for this recipe, but my best educated guess is that you’d want to use about 3 cups of puree. You could always add more puree or more seasonings once it’s all mixed together based on taste. Soup recipes are fairly forgiving so I think it will turn out great even if you’re not perfect on the measurements. I’d love to hear what you end up doing if you have time to come back and let us know how it turns out!