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 own a restaurant and after eating Autumn Squash soup at Panera Bread
I wanted to try to make it. So I googled the recipe and this came up. I made it yesterday and it was so delicious!!! I read some of the reviews first and one said that it doesn’t taste like Panera’s and they won’t be making it again. Well let me tell you this soup turned out even better than Panera’s!! It is outstanding and everyone that had it loved it too!! Just check out the reviews on Jackies Restaurant facebook page! I added heavy cream at the end and a few more pinches of brown sugar and a little salt. I kept tasting it until I got the flavor just right. I toppped it off with Papitas! Excellent!!!
So glad you liked it! Thanks for taking the time to come back and leave a comment!
It’s good, however, the addition of the cream cheese I don’t think is for me. I should have tried to prior to adding. It is definitely still good, but for me personally, there is a too much of that tang coming through that doesn’t taste smooth. I also had to add a little more spice because the flavors we’re more muted…you could smell them more than taste them. And I added a little brown sugar at the end to try to balance the tang, which helped.
That’s the great thing about soup recipes — they’re completely customizable! I like a little more tang and a little less sweet myself. :)
This was an absolutely delicious butternut squash soup! I prepared my squash in the oven @ 350 for 1 hr (instead of fighting a knife thru it raw). I used unfiltered apple juice, left out the olive oil, sautéing the onion in the butter instead. The spices are perfectly proportioned! The pumpkin purée and the low fat cream cheese are wonderful thickening agents. I think that this soup is not as sweet as the Panera version, with just a hint of sweetness.
This was a hit at a potluck! Thank you, Rachel, for a lovely keeper of a receipe!
So glad you liked this — thank you for taking the time to write such a thoughtful comment! I agree, it’s slightly less sweet, which was intentional. Thanks again for taking the time to leave a comment – it means so much to me!
Ever reheat in a Crock-Pot? Will it alter taste? It’s amazing right off the stove so far.
I think that would work perfectly! Glad you love it!
I reheated in a crock pot when I made it this weekend and it was fabulous!
Just perfect! I used chicken broth instead of vegetable broth, intentionally since I didn’t have the vegetable in the pantry. And I did not use curry powder. Next time I’ll add just a little bit more brown sugar. Easy recipe too, except for the peeling of the squash. It really tasted wonderful. Just like Panera’s!
So glad you liked it! More sugar would definitely make it taste even more like Panera’s but I try to limit sugar. :) Thanks for taking the time to come back and leave a comment!
So those bowls are AMAZING! Making the soup this weekend and I am sure will be dying over the actual recipe, but in the meantime…where did you get those bowls?!
I got them from Crate and Barrel and unfortunately it looks like they’re sold out! This one from WS is sorta similar though!
Thank you so much!! I made the soup this weekend and it is wonderful!!! All of my guests were raving about it. Thanks for sharing all the deliciousness!
So happy to hear you liked this soup! Thanks for taking the time to leave feedback!
This looks divine!
I can’t wait to try this! It looks so comforting!
This soup looks so smooth and creamy!! Thanks for sharing!!!
Thank you!
I am sorry Rachel but this does NOT taste anything like Panera Breads recipe. Too much apple juice, that is all I could taste, won’t be making this again.
Hi Lisa! Sorry that you didn’t see the similarity, so many people love this recipe!