Souper Soups for Fall

A bowl of White Bean Chicken Chili and a lime, a highly recommended garnish for this soup. Photo credit: Aspen Hickman

Aspen Hickman, Staff Writer for The Powderhorn

As the weather starts to get colder, soup is returning to dinner tables everywhere. Good soup is one of the best foods for this time of year. It’s warm, filling, and one pot can provide meals for days. But not all soups are created equal. These three soups are all you need for this season and beyond. 

Before we begin, there are a few important things to discuss. Most importantly, soup is not an exact science, and most aspects of these recipes can be adjusted to your liking. Soup is an art, and you are the artist. That said, garlic is not optional. Even if every other ingredient is substituted, garlic brings the whole soup together. Garlic can be reduced, but it can never be eliminated. 

3. Caldo Verde

Caldo Verde starts us off strong with a healthy mix of potatoes, greens, and sausage. Caldo Verde means ‘green broth’ in Spanish, and the veggies in this soup are the stars of the show. 

First, there’s the potatoes. Yukon Golds are recommended for this recipe, because they are delicate and help to thicken the broth when they disintegrate into the soup. If you prefer a thinner broth, use Russet potatoes. Any variety works well, but they do provide different results. 

Then we have the greens. Kale or collard greens work equally well here, but if you’re using collards, make sure to cook them thoroughly to avoid stringy greens, which can be a choking hazard. Take care not to chop the greens too small, or they get lost in the rest of the soup. Delicate greens like spinach should not be used here, because they will be cooked too long.

Last but not least, we have the sausage. Chorizo is the gold standard, but Kielbasa, Andouille, and any ground sausage works fine. Make sure your chosen sausage is at the spice level you prefer, because it provides most of the seasoning for this soup. Other spices can be added, but the flavor of the sausage will carry the broth. 

Recipe adapted from America’s Test Kitchen

Around 1 pound of sausage

1 onion, chopped fine

4-6 cloves of garlic, depending on size, minced

2 pounds potatoes, roughly cubed 

4-6 cups chicken broth or vegetable broth

4 cups water

Around 1 pound greens, with stems removed and chopped roughly

Steps

1. Brown the sausage in the pot you will use for the soup with a very small amount of olive oil. If you have cured sausage like Kielbasa or Andouille, cut the links finely. If you have uncured link sausage, cut them out of their casings. Once the sausage is browned, remove it from the pot and place it in a bowl. Leave the grease from the sausage in the pot because it will help to flavor the broth.

2. Add the onion, garlic, and any desired seasonings (such as paprika, red pepper flakes, or cayenne pepper) to the pot and sauté until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. 

3. Add the potatoes, broth, and water. Bring the pot to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are slightly tender, around 10 minutes. Optionally, remove about a cup of potatoes and a cup of broth and blend until smooth, then add this mixture back to the pot. This can help thicken the broth.

4. Add the greens and the reserved sausage and cook until the greens are done. This is generally 10-15 minutes, but make sure to check before you serve.

This soup has a wonderful broth that pairs well with the larger ingredients. You might want to pair this soup with a crusty bread or a light salad, which helps the richness of the soup come alive. 

By far the best thing about Caldo Verde is the potatoes. Yukon Golds add a buttery and gentle flavor, and they’ve become melt-in-your-mouth delicious by the time the soup is done. Russets give the soup structure when used, and either way they bring this soup to another level by mixing into the broth and making it thick and flavorful, even without blending. Caldo Verde is a distinct soup that’s perfect for this time of year. It’s hearty and filling, with just the right balance of veggies and meat. Store leftovers in the fridge almost immediately, and enjoy them for days. 

2.  Butternut Squash Soup

Butternut squash is abundant in fall, and this soup highlights that wonderfully unique squash flavor which people are searching for as the fall season kicks off. Even if you don’t like the flavor of this squash, you’ll love this soup. The processing removes the regular texture of butternut, which can be a turn off for many.

There is some required equipment for this recipe. This is a smooth soup, much like tomato soup, so you will need either a food processor, a blender, or an immersion blender. An immersion blender is recommended the most because you won’t have to remove the soup from the pot to process it. If you don’t have any of these but do find yourself in possession of an old fashioned potato masher, that can work with a fair bit of effort. It will still end up chunky, but it will have the flavor you’re looking for. 

The key to this recipe is the fresh thyme. The herb brings out the flavor of the gourd and lightens the whole dish, making sure that no one flavor overpowers another. Dried thyme works, but the flavor is quite different from fresh thyme. 

On to the main event: the squash! This recipe calls for 2 medium squash, but squash size varies. You’ll have to go with what you feel that your family will be able to eat in about 3 days, and remember that broth will add volume. Remember that the ratio is 1 tablespoon fresh thyme to every medium squash. 

Broth is another consideration you should make. Chicken or vegetable broth work well, but chicken broth can have a stronger flavor which could overpower the thyme and squash. If too much broth is added, the soup starts to separate and the broth rises to the surface. This is the only touchy part of the recipe, but if you mess up you can boil off the excess broth. 

Recipe, created by the author.

2 medium butternut squash

2 tablespoons of fresh thyme

1 onion

4-6 cloves of garlic, depending on size

3+ cups vegetable or chicken broth

Steps

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Cut the squash into quarters lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Leave the skin on the squash. Roast the squash cut side down until the skin separates cleanly from the flesh and the flesh is soft, around 2 hours. The fibers of the squash should be broken down. It is recommended that you flip the squash about halfway through roasting. 

2. While the squash cools, mince garlic, onion, and thyme. 

3. Separate the skin from the flesh of the squash and put the flesh into a bowl. You can either peel the skin off of the squash or scrape the squash out of the skin. 

4. Sauté the onions in a large pot until translucent, about 5 minutes. 

5. Add the fresh thyme and sauté for no more than 3 minutes. You don’t want the thyme to brown at all, just release some of its flavor. 

6. To the pot, add the squash and 2 cups of the broth. Now it’s time to blend. If you are not using an immersion blender, make sure you do this in multiple batches. The liquid might be hot, so be careful. 

7. After all the soup is returned to the pot, add the remaining broth. If the soup feels too thick, add more broth until the consistency feels right to you. If the added broth has cooled the soup, cook for a little longer. If you’ve added too much liquid, the soup will have to boil for a while longer to get rid of it. 

This soup is enjoyed best when used as a sort of dipping sauce for your grilled cheese or bread, but it’s amazing on its own. Crisp crackers or other crunchy carbohydrates like croutons add a fun and interesting texture contrast when paired with this soup.

The roasting of the squash brings out its slightly sweet flavor, and the thyme complements this well with its own unique flavor profile. This is a wonderful meal for cold nights at the beginning of the week, because the leftovers from this soup can be enjoyed with bread for snacks and little meals for the tiring afternoon of Monday. 

1. White Bean Chicken Chili

Chili is a staple food for many households as the air gets cooler. There are a million kinds of chili, and all of them have their own delicious quirks that make them the perfect meal for the fall and winter seasons. White Bean Chicken Chili is the best chili for cold weather, with the complex spice of the soup making it a warm dinner. 

Peppers are the base of this soup. Anaheim chilis are recommended for this recipe, but jalapeno, poblano, banana peppers, and even regular green bell peppers are acceptable. Don’t go any spicier than jalapenos, and make sure you’re choosing a pepper that you know you’ll be able to handle the spice of. If you don’t think you can handle any spice at all, go for banana or bell peppers, because these varieties have barely any spice and no spice, respectively. Fresh peppers are recommended, but canned green chilis will work just fine. 

When you’re processing your peppers, make sure to remove the seeds and the white ribs of the peppers, because these are the spiciest bits. Do not make the mistake of thinking that you can handle jalapeno or poblano seeds and ribs At a certain point, spice overpowers flavor, and the soup becomes unenjoyable. If you over spice your soup, there’s no going back. 

For this recipe, you will need to either be able to chop vegetables very, very finely or have a food processor or a blender. An immersion blender will not work for this. 

The chicken is a little bit touchy in this recipe. The recipe calls for you to sear the chicken, then cook it in the soup for a little, and then pull it apart. If you don’t want to do that, you can also smother the chicken in yogurt mixed with salt, then bake this until the chicken is easily pulled apart. 

Recipe adapted from The Best Make Ahead Recipe by Cook’s Illustrated Magazine. 

2 large onions, chopped rough

6-8 chilies, without seeds and ribs, chopped rough

3 pounds chicken breast

1 teaspoon coriander

1 and ½ teaspoon cumin

4 cloves garlic, minced finely

3 cans Cannellini or Great Northern beans

6 cups chicken broth

1-2 limes for garnish

Steps

1. Sear the chicken on all sides in a small amount of vegetable oil, then remove and set aside. Do this in a pot large enough for the soup.

2. Blend the chilis and onions together in a food processor until they resemble chunky salsa. Add garlic, coriander, and cumin to this mixture. 

3. Add the chili-onion mixture to the pot on medium heat, and saute until the onion bits are translucent, around 5 minutes. 

4. Remove 1 cup of this mixture from the pot and place in the food processor. Add one can of beans and one cup of broth. Process until very smooth. 

5. Return this mixture to the pot and add back the chicken and the rest of the broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 15 minutes. 

6. Remove the chicken from the pot and pull apart with two forks into bite sized pieces. Return the chicken to the pot. 

The lime is a must for this recipe. The citrus of the lime ties everything together and livens up this rich soup. The thickened broth is also a wonderful addition. The chicken is full of flavor from being cooked in the broth for a while, and the beans provide a hearty and soothing flavor to balance the spice of the chilis and onions. 

All three of these soups are amazing, and each has its place in your family’s meal rotation this season. But this chili is the king of the seasonal soups. Butternut Squash soup is for nights when all you want to do is curl up in bed and eat good food. It’s the simplest of all 3, and it’s the best for pairing with other small meals. Eat it with anything and everything, you won’t regret it. Caldo Verde is for the times when you’re craving something with complex flavors and a variety of wonderful textures that complement each other beautifully. But White Chicken Chili is for whenever you want something absolutely delicious and beautifully seasoned, which is, of course, all the time. Once you make this soup, you’ll never want to stop making it.