Butternut Squash Kale Soup

Butternut Squash Kale Soup uses some of my favorite soup ingredients, and this tasty vegetarian soup has gluten-free and lower-carb options. And this is a perfect recipe to use those packages of peeled-and-cut butternut squash that shows up in the fall!

Pin Butternut Squash Kale Soup to try it later!

This Butternut Squash Kale Soup is a recipe I first made just because I had butternut squash and kale in the fridge. And then I loved this soup with fall flavors, and it ended up being one of my favorite soups to make this time of year.

The bonus ingredient in the soup is Farro that I’d been craving ever since I first tried Farro with Mushrooms. The butternut, kale, and Farro combination here was wonderful, but I know some people aren’t going to have Farro. And also Farro isn’t gluten-free or low in carbs, so in the updated recipe I’m giving the option to switch Farro for brown rice (for gluten-free) or frozen cauliflower rice (for lower-carb and gluten-free.)

And no matter which way you make it, if you’re a fan of butternut squash and kale I hope you try this tasty meatless soup!

What ingredients do you need for this recipe?

(This is only a list of ingredients; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe with ingredient amounts.)

• Farro
• onion
• Olive Oil (affiliate link)
• Dried Thyme (affiliate link)
• Dried Sage (affiliate link)
• vegetable broth
• butternut squash
• kale
• salt and black pepper
• Balsamic Vinegar (affiliate link)
• Parmesan for serving (optional, dairy-free without the Parmesan)

Can you use pre-cut butternut squash for Butternut Squash Kale Soup?

I wrote a post about How to Peel and Cut Up a Butternut Squash and for Roasted Butternut Squash it’s definitely better when you cut it up yourself. But to use in soup, those packages of pre-cut butternut squash that show up at Costco this time of year are great!

Want Butternut Squash Kale Soup that’s gluten-free or lower-carb?

You can easily make a gluten-free version of this soup by switching out the Farro for brown rice; I would use Ben’s Brown Rice (affiliate link). And you can make a tasty lower-carb version by switching out the Farro for cauliflower rice.

How high in carbs is the Butternut Squash Kale Soup?

This soup recipe with farro or brown rice will have about 24 net carbs per serving. If you switch out the Farro for frozen cauliflower rice, the soup will have about 12.8 net carbs per serving.

Who else LOVES Butternut Squash?

I’m a huge butternut squash fan from childhood, which is why my carb-conscious recipe blog has so many butternut squash recipes! And when it’s fall I just have to have it a few times every year. You can use Favorite Roasted Butternut Squash Recipes to see all my recipes using it. Or use Favorite Winter Squash Recipes to see my favorites with all types of winter squash!

How to Make Butternut Squash Kale Soup:

(This is only a summary of the steps for the recipe; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

1. If you’re using farro, start by soaking it for at least 15 minutes. 
2. If you don’t want to Peel and Cut Up a Butternut Squash, I think pre-cut squash cubes are great for soup.
3. Cut the squash into pieces not more than 3/4 inch across.
4. Heat the oil in soup pot, then saute diced onion with the thyme and sage.
5. Add vegetable stock to the onions and herbs and bring to a low simmer; then add the farro and simmer 10 minutes. (You can skip this extra ten minutes if you’re using brown rice; cauliflower rice will be added towards the end of the cooking time.)
6. Add the squash cubes and simmer about 30 minutes.
7. Mash the squash a bit so some pieces will thicken the soup, then add the kale (and add cauliflower rice now if you’re using that) and simmer 20-30 minutes more.
8. Stir in a little balsamic vinegar if desired, and serve hot.
9. Butternut Squash Kale Soup will good with a little Parmesan cheese sprinkled on at the table, if you’re a fan of that.

Weekend Food Prep:

This recipe for Butternut Squash Kale Soup has been added to a category called Weekend Food Prep where you’ll find recipes you can prep or cook on the weekend and eat during the week! And this recipe would be perfect to make on the weekend and enjoy for a meatless lunch or dinner.

Continue to Content

Print

Yield: 8 servings

Butternut Squash Kale Soup

Prep Time 45 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour

Total Time 1 hour 45 minutes

This delicious Butternut Squash Kale Soup has some of my favorite fall and winter ingredients. And if you don't have Farro or want the soup to be gluten-free, see the tips for using brown rice instead. And for a version that's lower in carb, see tips for switching the Farro for frozen cauliflower rice.

Ingredients

• 1 cup Farro (see notes)
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 tsp. olive oil
• 1 tsp. dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp. dried sage (rubbed sage)
• 6 cups vegetable broth
• 6 cups diced butternut squash
• 4 cups chopped kale
• salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
• 1-2 T balsamic vinegar (optional)
• freshly grated Parmesan for serving (optional, this soup is dairy-free without the Parmesan)

Instructions

Soak Farro in cold water 15-30 minutes. (Rice does not need soaking)

Cut butternut squash into cubes not more than 3/4 inches across.

Chop onion, then heat olive oil in bottom of large soup pot, add onion and saute about 5 minutes.

Add thyme and sage and cook 2-3 minutes more.

Add vegetable stock to the soup pot and bring to a low simmer.

Drain Farro and add to stock, then simmer 10 minutes. (You could skip this initial ten minutes of cooking with brown rice.)

Add butternut squash cubes and simmer about 30 minutes, or until squash is quite soft.

Use a potato masher to mash some of the squash so it dissolves into the soup, leaving other pieces whole.

While soup simmers, wash and chop kale.

Add kale to soup (and cauliflower rice if you are using that) and simmer about 20-30 minutes more.

I like the greens cooked fairly well in my soup, check sooner if you prefer chewier greens.

Season to taste with salt and fresh ground black pepper.

If desired, stir in a tablespoon or two of balsamic vinegar right before you serve the soup.

Serve hot, with freshly-grated Parmesan cheese to add at the table if desired.

Notes

Use one cup of brown rice for gluten-free option or 2 cups frozen cauliflower rice for low-carb option.

If you don't care if it's vegetarian, this would be great made with homemade chicken stock.

Nutritional information is for the version made with Farro and doesn't include optional ingredients. Net carbs for the gluten-free soup with brown rice will be about the same as Farro. If you switch Farro for frozen cauliflower rice, the soup will have about 12.8 net carbs per serving.

Recipe created by Kalyn.

Nutrition Information

Yield

8

Serving Size

1
Amount Per Serving Calories 148Total Fat 2gSaturated Fat .3gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 1.4gCholesterol 0mgSodium 595mgCarbohydrates 32gFiber 8gSugar 6.3gProtein 5g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.

Did you make this recipe?

Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating (under the PRINT button in the recipe) or share a photo of your results on Instagram! THANKS!

Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
You could make a lower carb soup by making this with Cauliflower Rice or another type of low-carb rice product, but soup with butternut squash will never be super low in carbs. Use brown rice to replace the Farro if you don’t care about carbs but want the soup to be gluten-free. The use of butternut squash and farro would make this Butternut Squash Kale Soup phase two or three for the original South Beach Diet. 

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Check out Soup Recipes for more tasty and healthy soups! Use the Diet Type Index to find recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, on TikTok, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This Butternut Squash Kale Soup was first posted in 2008, and I’ve made it many times since then. The photos were updated in 2014 and the recipe was last updated with more information in 2025.

Share This: