Panera Bread soups are perfect for the fall season. The consistency is velvety smooth, and the flavors are made up of some of the season’s best produce. But if you’d rather have more than a serving, you could make a pot at home with this Copycat Panera Autumn Squash Soup recipe. It’s perfect for a light lunch or a side dish with dinner. I’ve also served it as one of my dishes at Thanksgiving several years in a row.
This Panera Bread recipe calls for carrots and pumpkin. They give the soup extra sweetness and depth of flavor, plus the gorgeous deep orange-yellow color. The spices and seasonings give this soup its savory flavor. It’s a very simple soup to make. The most time-consuming part is chopping up the pumpkin. Once you’re through that step, the rest is pretty simple. First, you’ll sauté the onions. Then you all add all of the produce and spices to a soup pot with the onions and cook them all together for about 20 minutes. Once they’re cooked, you’ll add the remaining ingredients and then mix it all together with a hand mixer.
This Copycat Panera Autumn Squash Soup recipe is light, healthy, beautiful, and delicious.
Copycat Panera Autumn Squash Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 2 lbs chopped butternut squash
- 3 small carrots, chopped
- 3-4 cups vegetable broth
- 2 cups apple cider or apple juice (do NOT use apple cider vinegar)
- 1/2 tsp curry powder
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- dash of nutmeg
- 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
- 2 tbsp butter
- 2 oz low-fat cream cheese
- 1 tbsp brown sugar, more to taste
- salt to taste
- heavy cream, optional
Instructions
- First, heat oil in a large bowl over medium-high heat. Add onions and saute until translucent, stirring frequently.
- Next, add squash, carrots, vegetable broth, apple cider, and spices.
- Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until the squash and carrots are soft. Remove from heat and add pumpkin puree, butter, cream cheese, and brown sugar. Puree with a hand blender or in batches in a normal blender. Blend until very smooth.
- You may also add extra brown sugar, salt, or honey to achieve a taste closer Panera’s. Also, add a little heavy cream if you want a more decadent soup. If desired, add more vegetable broth to thin the soup.
- Return the soup to the burner over medium-low heat, if you need to heat the soup back up. Then serve immediately.
Notes
- To reduce sodium, use low-sodium or no-salt-added vegetable broth.
If you love Panera Bread soups, check out our Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup Recipe.
