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!
I followed the recipe exactly other than using regular cream cheese (not low-fat). It was ok, but it really didn’t replicate Panera’s soup very well for me. I kept tasting it (after using the specified amounts of seasoning and some cream) and then adding more seasonings and more honey trying to get the right flavor. By adding substantially more seasoning, and quite a bit of honey and brown sugar, it got to the point of being good..but still wasn’t what I was expecting. If I had never had Panera’s version, I’d think this was pretty good though after additional seasoning/sweetener, 4/5 stars. But as a copycat of Panera’s as-written, 2/5.
It also took a lot longer than 10-15 min of simmering to soften the chopped squash and carrots.
Thanks for your feedback. Sorry it didn’t live up to your expectations. Cook time will vary based on how large or small the vegetables are cut.
I am obsessed with Panara’s Squash soup. I actually just finished a bowl while researching this recipe. I cannot wait to try this. I will roast the squash, fresh pumpkin pie pumpkin, carrots and or sweet potatoes & possibly onions to bring out their natural sweetness. This sounds delicious. I’ll let you know how it turns out. Thanks for doing all the leg work!
I hope you love it, Denise!
Magnifique! Throw a few pepitas on top and I’m in heaven! Thank you so much, Rachel!
So glad you liked it! Thanks for taking the time to come back and leave a comment!
Mine tasted kind of sour. I admit I did use Mott’s Light Apple juice. Would hat make that big of a difference? I didn’t use heavy cream either.
Any ideas out there?
Hmm, the cream does mellow out the flavor a bit. I’d try just adding a bit of brown sugar to see if that helps.
How much canned butternut squash would you use (15 oz can size)? I wanted to try this but thought if I can use canned squash I can get supper ready much more quickly and without need to go to the store:)
I haven’t tried this with canned squash, so I’m not sure about exact measurements. I would probably start with three cans, but also decrease the amount of broth used. You can always use more broth or water at the end if it’s too thick, so start with less than you think you need and add more after you puree everything.
I just made it, following the recipe to a T and it came out much sweeter than Panera’s. I even tried adding heavy creamer and a little extra salt. If I try making it again, I will use maybe half the cider and replace the liquid with additional vegetable broth. Panera’s is quite a bit more savory than this soup is. I would even call this soup tart to be quite honest.
Hmm…you mentioned it was sweet and then later said it was tart. If it’s tart, I’m wondering if you accidentally used apple cider vinegar instead of apple cider? That would make it very sour/tart.
Do you freeze when completed, with cream cheese added, etc? Does it separate after being reheated from freezung?
Should be fine frozen as the completed product, all ingredients included. I hope you love it!
This is hands down, the BEST fall soup ever. Beginning in September through Thanksgiving, this soup is on our table at least eight times. It tastes even better than Panera’s autumn squash soup and it’s probably better for you. Today I just made this as one of my Thanksgiving side dishes ahead of time and will freeze it, then unthaw it and put it in a crockpot on Thanksgiving day (I need to make as many things ahead of time as possible to lower my stress level come Thanksgiving).
My extended family has never tried this soup so we’ll see how it all goes. Thank you, Rachel!
Oh my goodness, thank you so much! I really appreciate the kind words and you taking the time to come back and leave a comment. I’m so glad you liked this recipe!
This recipe turned out delicious. We love the Panera Bread autumn squash soup and I am so glad I found this recipe. I am going to make this often. I made the curry powder according to your recipe to add to this soup. The combination and proportions of the spices you used yielded a very fragrant and tasty mix. I am going to be using this curry powder for my other Indian curries too! Thanks so much for sharing this recipe.
I’m so glad you liked the soup and the curry powder! Thank you for taking the time to come back and leave a comment!
Hello! Im looking forward to making this for Thanksgiving. I will probably double the recipe. Can you please tell me how many butternut squashes the recipe calls for? I want to be sure i buy enough b4 bringing home and chopping to measure as the recipe reads. Thanks so much!
Hi Amanda! I hope you love it! The recipe calls for 2 pounds of cubed squash. So if you’re doubling the recipe, I’d buy about 5 pounds of butternut squash (to account for peels/seeds/etc.). I hope that helps and I hope you all love the recipe!
Thanks Rachel. Im sure we will! Would you say two average sized squashes will suffice?
I would assume that would work perfectly. :)