Chef Guy Vaknin’s Butternut Squash Soup

|Updated Oct 13, 2022
Chef Guy Vaknin

Guy Vaknin, who put plant-based sushi on the map, continues to innovate and elevate vegetable preparation and presentation. If you've eaten at Beyond Sushi, you understand, if not, the description of one of his best rolls says it all: Black rice, pickled cabbage, mango, hickory-smoked jackfruit, baby arugula, and mint topped with tomato guajillo sauce. Guy kindly shared his staple Thanksgiving recipe, butternut squash soup, a top seller at Beyond Sushi.

If you're hosting a Thanksgiving or bringing a dish, soup is a warming, filling, healthy, delicious starter, and stores well if you're traveling or prepping days in advance.

Butternut Squash Soup

Serves 4

Ingredients

  • 1 large butternut squash
  • 1 large onion
  • 3 tablespoons vegan butter
  • 3 cloves of garlic
  • 2 cups unsweetened plant-based milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/2 cup white wine
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Garnish

  • 1/4 cup Violife feta
  • 1/4 cup roasted pistachios
  • Few mint leaves

Instructions

  1. In a soup pot, sweat chopped onions, whole garlic cloves, and butter until translucent.
  2. Turn up the heat to caramelize.
  3. Deglaze with white wine, reduce to evaporate the alcohol.
  4. Turn heat down and add cubed butternut squash, milk, and nutmeg.
  5. Cook covered for 30-40 minutes.
  6. In a blender or food processor, mix until smooth.
  7. Serve hot garnished with cubed feta, roasted pistachios, and mint leaves.

Nutritionals 

Calories 396 | Total Fat 35.6g | Saturated Fat 27.3g | Sodium 970mg | Total Carbohydrates 15.9g | Dietary Fiber 4.3g | Total Sugars 6.7g | Protein 3.7g | Calcium 53mg | Iron 2mg | Potassium 533mg |

Chef Guy Vaknin is the founder and owner of Beyond Sushi. 

For more vegan Thanksgiving ideas, check out this guide to 25 plant-based holiday recipes.