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This creamy pumpkin soup brings all the best fall flavors together in one bowl. Made with pumpkin puree, carrots, onion, and warm spices, it’s topped with crispy bacon and crunchy croutons for a dish that’s rich and cozy.
Holly’s Recipe Highlights
- Flavor: Warm spices with a sweet-savory balance from the pumpkin, onions, and broth along with smoky bacon create the perfect fall flavor.
- Time-Saving Tip: Use pre-chopped veggies or frozen onion and carrot mixes.
- Recommended Tools: An immersion blender is the best way to get the lumps out right inside the pot.
- Serving Suggestions: This pumpkin soup recipe is perfect as a starter for holiday feasts or a main with bread for dipping.
Ingredient Tips and Easy Swaps
- Pumpkin: I use canned pumpkin, but you can use blended roasted fresh pumpkin if you have it. When shopping, be sure the label on the can reads “puree” and not “pie filling.”
- Vegetables: Other squash varieties like butternut or acorn squash can be added. Carrots add a touch of sweetness, but sweet potatoes can be swapped in if you’d like!
- Soup Base: Heavy cream, broth, and butter make the base for this pumpkin soup. Swap in coconut milk as a dairy alternative.
- Spices & Seasonings: Bay leaf, thyme, nutmeg, salt, and pepper round out the flavor profile. Add a teaspoon of DIY pumpkin spice or ginger for warmth.
- Bacon: Cooked bacon makes a salty complement to this sweet and savory soup. Diced ham or sliced smoked sausage are also excellent.
How to Make Pumpkin Soup
- Cook bacon and set aside for garnish. Cook vegetables in bacon fat.
- Combine broth & seasonings, then pumpkin purée and cream and simmer (see recipe below).
- Blend the soup until smooth. Then garnish and serve.
Storing Leftovers
Keep leftover pumpkin soup covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Freeze portions in zippered bags for up to 8 weeks. Reheat on the stove to medium heat.
More Pumpkin Recipes You’ll Love
Did your family love this Pumpkin Soup? Leave a comment and rating below.
Pumpkin Soup
This easy pumpkin soup is made with chicken broth, pumpkin, bacon, and warm spices, then blended with cream until silky smooth.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 slices bacon cooked and chopped
- 2 tablespoons bacon grease or butter as needed
- 1 medium onion diced
- ½ cup shredded carrot about 1 medium carrot
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 2½ cups chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme or ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream plus extra for garnish
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley divided
- ½ cup croutons optional garnish
Instructions
- In a soup pot over medium-high heat, cook the bacon until crisp. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate, leaving 2 tablespoons of fat in the skillet. If the bacon grease is less than 2 tablespoons, add butter to make up the difference.
- Reduce the heat to medium and add the onion. Cook until softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in the carrot and garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute more.
- Add the chicken broth, brown sugar, bay leaf, thyme sprigs, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Bring to a boil, then reduce to low heat and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes.
- Add the pumpkin and cream and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes.
- Discard the bay leaf and thyme stems, and using an immersion blender or hand blender, puree until smooth.
- Stir in 1 tablespoon of parsley and pour into soup bowls. Garnish with cream, croutons, crumbled bacon, and remaining parsley.
Notes
- To use fresh pumpkin, cut a small sugar pumpkin in half and remove the seeds. Brush with olive oil and bake 35-40 minutes at 350°F until tender. Scoop out the flesh and puree in a food processor.
- If you don’t have an immersion blender or a hand blender, puree the finished soup in a regular blender. Be sure not to seal the blender tightly as the steam needs to escape.
- Do not swap in milk, as it can potentially curdle in hot soup. Heavy cream (or even coconut milk) is the best dairy to use in this recipe because the high-fat content keeps it from separating.
- Leftover soup will keep in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, and in the freezer for 8 weeks.
Nutrition Information
Calories: 286 | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 51mg | Sodium: 1034mg | Potassium: 430mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 19856IU | Vitamin C: 11mg | Calcium: 77mg | Iron: 2mg
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Appetizer, Lunch, Soup
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Superb soup – one of the best ever.
Hi Holly,
I am interested in trying this recipe for pumpkin soup. My dilemma is that I am on a low cholesterol regime which means no dairy. I noticed you stated I could use cononut milk instead of the heavy cream. I will try that. Instead of bacon grease and pieces of bacon, is it ok to use something else? What can I use instead of 2 tablespoons of bacon grease? Thank you, Mary
The bacon grease does add flavor to the soup but you can replace it with margarine or a lower cholesterol oil if you prefer.
After years of making various Pumpkin soup recipes, this is the tastiest and the best. I believe the addition of only 4 slices of bacon; brown sugar; thyme; nutmeg; bay leaf; and parsley elevate this soup. We are a family that enjoys all varieties of soups; so added butternut squash as an addition;; and then followed the remainder of the recipe to the letter. I would highly recommend this soup, it is tasty and delicious!
Have cooked numerous pumpkin soup recipes, this one is the best I have ever tasted. Only make two minor changes: added the bacon crumbled into the soup and; added 1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice into the soup, because this family loves everything pumpkin. Thanks, Holly, for sharing your recipe.
I’m so glad you loved it!
My family loved this soup! I used a can of evaporated milk instead of cream to reduce the fat, and garnished with a spoonful of sour cream and some pepitas instead of croutons. I will make this recipe again- perfect for chilly weather!
very good!
Because I grow our own pumpkins, I always have plenty of puree in the freezer ready for any recipe, anytime. For this, I chose to use some that was smoked (needed for another recipe) and I think it really added a great flavor, especially when the bacon was apple wood smoked, too. All the veggies and thyme were from our own garden and the chicken broth was homemade. Needless to say, this was full of flavor and a big hit. Definitely a keeper!
It’s the perfect recipe for those winter knights that you want to lounge and have something warm and delicious to eat.
Definitely agree! It’s so delicious.
Easy and very good soup! Made it exactly as the recipe was written and it was savory, seasoned just right. My hubby was skeptical but he liked it! Thanks for a great recipe
So great to hear, Peg!
This soup was delicious! My kids even loved it! Very easy to make and has great flavor!
My husband and I loved this soup. I plan to serve it Thanksgiving. I added a little curry. It was very quick and easy to make. I grated carrots and potatoes for soup.
I’m so afraid of the Thyme and Bay leaf!
I have such picky eaters. What impact would it have if left out? And those flavors strong?
It will change the flavor but it will still be delicious.
I am thinking of making this for my upcoming (Canadian) Thanksgiving dinner, but would need to double or triple it to have enough for everyone. Do you see any problems with just multiplying the ingredients by 3?
It should work great for all the base ingredients. When it comes to the spices, especially the salt, I would recommend starting with doubling the amount and taste testing from there.
Wow, this recipe is DELISH and would make a great starter for a holiday meal without being hard on the budget. (I have to confess, however, that I added S&B curry powder and a squeeze of ginger paste to mine to satisfy the spice monster that lives within.)
That sounds delicious, Vicki! Thanks for sharing.
Something seems to have happened to my question…..it was “is the bacon added and pureed with the soup or just a garnish?”
The bacon is added as a garnish however, the bacon fat also flavors the soup. Enjoy!
Thanks, Holly……keep these wonderful recipes coming!
Hi, can I just use butter instead of bacon grease please? This recipe sounds awesome, but I no longer buy bacon “health reasons”!
Thank you so much.
Ferryal
You certainly can.
Thanks for sharing this recipe. It hit the spot on a really cold day!
Easy and delicious. The perfect fall soup!
Can you freeze this soup?
Hi Maureen, I have not tried freezing this soup but I think it would work well.
This was DELISH!!! Didn’t have carrot do I subbed for more puréed pumpkin. YUMMMMM!!!!