Easy Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup — The First Recipe in the New Pot

Cody is on day four hundred and eighty. AP exams begin Monday. I have AP English on Wednesday May ninth and AP US History on Friday May eleventh. The exams are the kind of stress that requires a kitchen that runs itself, and on Saturday afternoon I bought myself an Instant Pot at Walmart on the May rollback. $59.99, marked down from $89.99. The purchase came out of the savings envelope, which dropped to $498 after the purchase but is going to come back fast.

The Instant Pot is the appliance everybody on the cooking blogs has been talking about for two years. I had been resistant because it was expensive and because the kitchen had been running fine without one. The May rollback at $59.99 was the price I had been waiting for. The pot came home in a big box, and I unpacked it on the kitchen table Saturday afternoon, and Mama and I read the manual together at the kitchen table for an hour.

The first recipe in the new pot was Cookie and Kate’s Easy Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup. Cubed butternut squash, an onion, garlic, ginger, vegetable broth, salt, pepper. All into the pot. Pressure cook for fifteen minutes. Quick release. Blend smooth with the stick blender directly in the pot. Stir in coconut milk and a touch of maple syrup. Done.

The math: a small butternut squash $1.99, an onion, garlic and ginger free, vegetable broth $0.99, coconut milk $1.79 (used a half can), maple syrup. Total: about $4.20 for a pot that fed Mama and me for three meals.

The technique is the pressure-cook-and-blend. The Instant Pot at high pressure for fifteen minutes does what a stovetop simmer would take ninety minutes to do. The pot self-locks until pressure releases. The whole soup is done in twenty-five minutes from start to plate, including blending.

Mama said, eating Tuesday night, baby, the kitchen got a new appliance and the kitchen is going to be different now. She is right. The Instant Pot is going to live on the counter. The AP exams are going to happen this week and next, and the kitchen is going to keep running.

The recipe is below. The trick is the quick-release pressure (the manual valve) and the stick blender directly in the pot — do not transfer to a separate blender.

French Onion Soup

Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes | Total Time: 1 hour 35 minutes | Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 4 large yellow onions, finely diced or thinly sliced
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/3 cup dry white wine (or dry sherry)
• 6 cups beef broth
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme (or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme)
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 thick slices crusty French bread or baguette, toasted
• 1 1/2 cups shredded Swiss cheese

Instructions

1. Caramelize the onions. Melt butter with olive oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add the diced onions and stir to coat. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened and translucent. Reduce heat to medium-low, add sugar and salt, and continue cooking for 35 to 45 minutes, stirring every few minutes, until the onions are deeply golden brown and sweet. Don’t rush this step—low and slow is the key.
2. Add garlic and deglaze. Stir in the minced garlic and cook for 1 minute until fragrant. Pour in the white wine and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Let the wine cook off for about 2 minutes.
3. Build the broth. Add the beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, thyme, and bay leaf. Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to low. Cover and cook for 20 minutes to let the flavors meld. Remove the thyme sprigs and bay leaf. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.
4. Prepare the bowls. Set your oven rack about 6 inches from the broiler element and preheat the broiler to high. Ladle the soup into four oven-safe crocks or bowls set on a rimmed baking sheet.
5. Top and broil. Place one slice of toasted bread on top of each bowl. Pile about 1/3 cup of shredded Swiss cheese over each slice, letting it extend slightly over the edges. Broil for 2 to 4 minutes, watching carefully, until the cheese is bubbly, melted, and spotted with golden brown.
6. Serve. Let the bowls cool for a minute or two—they’ll be extremely hot. Serve immediately.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 420 | Protein: 22g | Fat: 20g | Carbs: 38g | Fiber: 3g | Sodium: 1280mg