This silky, creamy, addictive Pumpkin Sage Soup will have you licking your bowl!
About This Vegan Pumpkin Sage Soup
Most pumpkin recipes are inspired by fall when pumpkins and other winter squash are spilling out of bins at farmer’s markets and grocery stores. I miss these autumn vibes now that I’m living in Asia!
I dream of brisk mornings, colorful leaves all over the ground, pumpkin spice, lattes, scarves, and deep bowls of stew. And even though I’m not in Canada, my internal clock is still telling me it’s time for some pumpkin.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- onions
- garlic
- pumpkin or winter squash like butternut, kabocha, or red kuri.
- fresh sage leaves
- cashews
- fresh or dried thyme
- vegetable broth
How To Make This Recipe
This Pumpkin Sage Soup can be served a few ways – as an appetizer, paired with a light salad for lunch, or with with crusty bread and with added beans or grains for a hearty dinner. I’ve enjoyed all three!
To make this recipe you simmer all the ingredients in a pot and then, when everything is cooked, you blend it with some cashews to get a creamy, smooth texture. It’s very easy and so delicious!
Equipment You'll Need
- Soup pot
- Blender or immersion blender
Tips, Tricks & How To Simplify
- Fresh sage! Fresh sage really makes this recipe shine and if you’ve never cooked with fresh sage, this is a great chance to try it. The flavor will blow you away!
- Soak the cashews (or whichever nut you’re using) as this makes for better digestion and a smoother texture. You can skip this step if you have a high-speed blender.
- Chop the pumpkin/squash the night before to speed up the process.
- Try using frozen butternut squash.
Health Notes
- Pumpkin – Fiber, beta-carotene, b-vitamins, anti-oxidants!
- Cashews – Healthy fats to help absorb beta-carotene from the pumpkin. Great source of copper – essential for bones and connective tissues!
- Onions and garlic – Members of the allium family which offer powerful anti-inflammatory and immune boosting sulfur-based compounds!
Variations
- You can use almonds or hazelnuts in this soup instead of cashews. If you do this, soak these nuts for longer, about 8 hours.
- Swap sweet potato for squash.
- Add 1 to 2 cups of cooked chickpeas, grains and or baby spinach for a heartier soup.
If You Like Pureed Vegan Soups...
You’ll love the soup recipes in The Plant-Based Cookbook!
I love a creamy, pureed soup and in the cookbook I include two of my alltime favorites: Warming Carrot and Tomato Soup and Sweet Potato Rosemary Bisque! Come check it out!
Pumpkin Sage Soup
Ingredients
- 2 cups diced yellow onions
- 5 garlic cloves minced
- 4 heaping cups peeled and chopped pumpkin or other winter squash kabocha or butternut squash work well
- 8 small to medium fresh sage leaves
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme or 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes or to your preference
- 4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth*
- ⅓ cup cashews soaked for 2 to 4 hours
- ¾ teaspoon sea salt or to taste
Instructions
- In a large soup pot, sauté the onions with a few tablespoons of water and a big pinch of salt for 7 to 10 minutes, stirring often and adding water, a couple of tablespoons at a time, to prevent burning if needed.
- Now add the garlic, pumpkin, sage leaves, thyme, and red pepper flakes. Stir and sauté for another minute or two.
- Now add the vegetable broth and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce to a simmer and simmer partially covered for 15 minutes or until the pumpkin is very tender. Remove the soup from heat.
- Drain the cashews, discard the soaking liquid, and add them to a high-speed blender. Transfer the soup to the blender too and blend until completely smooth (do this in batches if needed). Pour the soup back into the pot and season to taste. If adding chickpeas or spinach, stir in now.
- Divide among bowls and garnish with thinned sour cream (see notes) and/or red pepper flakes.
Notes
- Optional additions:
- 1½ cups cooked or canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 packed cup baby spinach
- *For a nut-free version, use 3 cups of vegetable broth, and instead of adding cashews to the blender, add 1 cup of creamy soy milk and blend until smooth.
- I use a thinned version of this Sour Cream to garnish this pumpkin and sage soup!
- If you use kabocha squash, you can leave the peel on!
mary
Perfect, just perfect, and so pretty! It looks so cozy and nourishing!
Ashley Madden
Thank you so much, Mary!!!
xo
Ashley
Michelle Tatro
How will this work with Almond Milk?
Ashley Madden
Hey Michelle! Do you mean instead of soy milk if you skip the cashews? I’ve never tried it but I find commercial almond milk a little too thin! The cashews really give it the creamy, velvety finish that makes it irresistible! I hope this helps Michelle, sorry I don’t have the exact answer!
Ashley
Valerie
What’s the best way to make this with canned pumpkin?
Ashley Madden
I’ve never made it with canned but I suggest adding 1 to 1.5 cups of pureed pumpkin to the pot when you add the broth. I would reduce the broth to 3 cups and simmer for 10 minutes. Follow the rest of the recipe as written and add more broth to thin if needed. Let me know if you make it and how it turns out 🙂
–
Ashley
Valerie
Just made this and it turned out really well. It was a little thick just using the 3 cups of liquid as suggested so I added the 4th cup (I used 2 cups broth and 2 cups water – I have yet to embrace the flavor of veg. broth) I also garnished it with sprouted pumpkin seeds! My son and husband both loved it!
Ashley Madden
Awesome! Thanks Valerie! I’ll make note of this 🙂