Indulge | Nov. 2025
BUTTERNUT BISQUE
By Monica Kass Rogers
photography by Monica Kass Rogers
Matching the golden hues and spicy scents of autumn, this velvety-smooth butternut bisque makes a nice start to a holiday meal or works well for a light lunch. As with other traditional bisques, ours includes shallots, garlic, and vermouth for depth of flavor. A swirl of crème fraîche adds richness. And for textural contrast, we’ve finished the soup with a crunchy topping of roasted squash seeds and quick-fried sage leaves. You can either peel and cube the squash for slightly quicker roasting or simply slice it in half and invert it.
Serves 6
INGREDIENTS
FOR SOUP:
• 1 (2½ to 3 lb.) butternut squash, with the squash seeds scooped out, threads removed, washed, and patted dry
• 1 tsp. olive oil, plus ½ tsp. for roasting squash seeds
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• 1 head of garlic
• ½ stick unsalted butter
• 4 shallots, diced fine
• ¼ cup dry vermouth
• 6 cups chicken stock
• ½ tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
• Salt and pepper to taste
FOR GARNISH:
• ¼ cup crème fraîche
• 2/3 cup olive oil
• 20 fresh sage leaves
INSTRUCTIONS
ROAST SQUASH, GARLIC, AND SQUASH SEEDS: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut squash in half lengthwise. Scoop out seeds and set them aside. Brush squash with 1 tsp. olive oil and invert on a rimmed baking sheet OR for slightly quicker roasting: peel the squash, cube it, toss with 1 tsp. olive oil, and place on a rimmed baking sheet. Cut the top off the head of garlic, exposing the garlic cloves. Flip this over onto the roasting pan next to the squash. Add 1 cup of water to the roasting pan and cover the pan with foil.
Rinse and pat the squash seeds dry, removing any squash threads. In a small bowl, toss the cleaned and dried squash seeds with the remaining ½ tsp. olive oil and 1/8 tsp. salt. On a second sheet pan, spread oiled and salted squash seeds. Place both sheet pans in the oven. Roast squash seeds until crisp, golden, and popping—about 15 minutes. Remove from oven. Leave the pan of squash and garlic in the oven for the full 1 to 1½ hours, until squash and garlic are very soft. When squash and garlic are finished roasting, remove from oven. (While the squash roasts, work on the next recipe step.)
MAKE BISQUE BASE: In a large stock pot over medium heat, melt the butter and add shallots. Stir, sautéing until very soft and the pan is almost dry. Add the vermouth. Stir and continue cooking until vermouth has mostly cooked off. Add the 6 cups of stock, and simmer until the liquid has reduced to 4½ cups—about 30 minutes. While the stock reduces, scoop the roasted squash out of the squash skins. Discard skins.
FINISH BISQUE: Stir in the roasted squash. Pinch out the soft roasted garlic cloves and add to the pot. Blend soup until very smooth. Stir in grated nutmeg. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside, keeping warm.
FRY SAGE LEAVES: In a small saucepan over medium heat, add 2/3 cup of olive oil. Working quickly, when oil begins to shimmer, add a small handful of sage leaves and fry for a few seconds until crispy. Scoop fried leaves out of the oil to drain on paper toweling. Repeat until all sage leaves have been fried. Turn off heat. Reserve sage oil for garnish.
GARNISH & SERVE: Ladle bisque into bowls, drip a few drops of the reserved sage oil onto the top of each, and attractively swirl in a few dots of crème fraîche. Sprinkle with reserved roasted squash seeds and top with fried sage leaves. Serve immediately.
