AIP broccoli and butternut squash soup - dairy-free 'cheesy' soup, weeknight comfort

A weeknight that has nothing left to give still needs dinner, and this one barely asks anything of you: 1 pot, a blender, and little else. It still comes out tasting like more work went into it than actually did. If nutritional yeast is not something you already keep on hand, it is worth the 1 trip to find it, since a few spoonfuls are what give this soup its savory, almost cheesy depth without a drop of dairy.

The butternut squash here is doing real work: vitamin A, something the immune system and the gut's mucosal lining both depend on to keep functioning well, useful ground while an Autoimmune condition is being moved toward calmer, steadier territory. Broccoli's fiber and plant compounds support that same gut environment in their own quieter way. There is nothing dramatic in a bowl of soup, just steady, ordinary support on a tired Tuesday.

Let it be an easy dinner. Ladle it in, sit with the bowl a minute before the rest of the evening pulls at you again.

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons coconut oil
• 1/2 medium onion, diced (about 1/4 cup)
• 16 ounces butternut squash chunks (frozen or fresh)
• 1 quart bone broth
• 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast (optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 6 ounces broccoli, chopped into very small pieces (frozen or fresh)

AIP note: nutritional yeast is AIP-allowed and seed-free. It is optional here. If you also follow SCD, leave it out.

Method

Warm the coconut oil in a pot over medium heat. Add the diced onion and cook until soft and translucent, a few minutes.

Add the butternut squash chunks and the bone broth. Bring to a simmer, then cover and cook until the squash is fully tender and breaks apart easily with a fork.

Take the pot off the heat. Add the nutritional yeast, if using, and the salt. Blend until smooth, either with an immersion blender right in the pot or by carefully transferring to a stand blender and back. Take care with hot liquid.

Return the pot to low heat. Stir in the finely chopped broccoli and cook gently until the broccoli is just tender and still bright green. Taste and adjust the salt.

Instant Pot variation

Use the saute setting to soften the onion in the coconut oil, then add the squash and broth. Cancel saute, seal, and cook on high pressure for about 5 minutes with a quick release (time estimated, untested). Blend in the nutritional yeast and salt as above, then return to saute and stir in the broccoli until just tender.

*Adapted from gutsybynature.com*