When it comes to Butternut Squash Soup, I want simple, creamy and thick. Maybe too thick for some peoples tastes (but I’ll tell you how much broth to add if you want a thinner soup…) but it sticks to your ribs and is a party for your taste buds. This Creamy Butternut Squash Soup can be made in the slow cooker and features homemade sausage crumbles.
You’ve got two options for the sausage crumbles…you can use already made sausage, whether it’s venison, another wild game or a domestic meat like beef and pork, OR you can whip up these quick “sausage crumbles” that are delicious and much simple/cheaper/quicker than using up precious venison sausage. Please tell me I’m not the only one who feels like good homemade venison sausage is worth it’s weight in gold?! Even when we would get it made by a butcher, its one thing I wouldn’t trade others for.
Also? Let me let you in on a little secret…butternut squash is my favourite to use because you can peel it with a potato peeler!! Just cut off the stem, peel it with the peeler, then cut it up into chunks. How easy is that?! (scrape the seeds our of the bottom ‘bell’ like you would a pumpkin. You can even roast them like pumpkin seeds for funsies!) Aaaaand I may tell my kids it’s potato soup so they eat it and don’t complain about the squash…no shame in my game.
I’ve made this soup bare bones and simple. There’s no fancy steps, it’s meant to feed your family a great meal without a lot of work. Nothing needs to be uniformly chopped, it’s all getting pureed in the end. So just rough chop it all in inch or so sized chunks and you’re good to go. So without further ado, here’s my recipe for Creamy Butternut Soup with Venison Sausage Crumbles.
Crockpot Creamy Butternut Soup with Venison Sausage Crumbles
Ingredients
- 10 cups butternut squash cubed
- 1 onion coursely chopped
- 5 garlic cloves
- 3-5 cups broth or stock of choice I used 3 cups chicken broth for a thick thick soup. I suggest starting with 3 and thinning out when you puree if needed
- ½ cup cream This could be half and half, table cream or heavy cream. Milk would even work in a pinch! Use what ya got yo.
Sausage
- 1 pound good fresh chorizo or italian sausage Venison, Moose, Elk, Beef, Pork
- 1 pound ground meat
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon red chile flakes mild, not spicy ones
- 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
Instructions
- Place the butternut squash, onion, garlic, and broth in the crockpot
- Cook on low for 8-10 hours or 4-5 hours on high. (OR go totally crazy and cook it for 30-45 min on the stovetop in a pot. Just bring to a boil and then turn down to a simmer. Cook until squash can be mashed with a fork against the side of a pot.)
- After the soup is done cooking, puree in batches in a blender, or the super simple way, use an immersion blender! They’re my best friend for soups. After you’ve pureed the soup add
- After you’ve pureed the soup add the cream and stir in your cooked sausage crumbles.
- Taste adjust the salt and pepper seasoning, and you’re ready to serve!
Sausage Crumbles
- Either take 1 pound of good fresh chorizo or italian sausage (Venison, Moose, Elk, Beef, Pork, etc) out of the casings, cook in a frying pan and stir into the crockpot after pureeing. Good sausage is what makes this soup shine so don’t choose some Jimmy Deans breakfast sausage. Please. Unless that’s your favourite sausage and you think it’d be the best thing ever in this soup…then who am I to judge…
- OR
- Make your own quick sausage out of ground meat (Venison, Moose, Elk, Beef, Pork, Turkey etc. This needs to be mixed up a minimum of one hour, unto 3 days before cooking (I did it after I threw the soup into the crockpot in the morning.)
- Store in a container in the fridge until ready to cook.
- Brown in frying pan until cooked, and stir into the crockpot after pureeing the soup.
Nutrition
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It wouldn’t be winter without warm and hearty soup recipes. These recipes are cold weather Canadian approved!
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