I'm wanting to dive into making my first soup. I'm reaching out to ya'll as you're food makers and food enjoyers. Looking for tips and favorite recipes from trusted folks rather than just doing a Google search. Thanks!

I love a good soup homemade, especially on chilly, gray days (helllllo, summer in San Francisco!)

Good ingredients are key. For soup, the easiest one to overlook is, paradoxically, all that liquid. Good stock will make all the difference. If you aren't in the habit of making your own stock, fear not. Bi-Rite sells great, high quality stock back in the freezer section. I bet Avedano's and Fatted Calf do as well. I'd avoid the boxes or cans of store-bought stock if at all possible, with the one exception being Better Than Bouillon, which actually does make a really nice concentrate that you mix with water to make stock. If your only option is a can of Swanson's chicken stock, you're honestly better off just using water.

For me, good spices and herbs. Compounding flavours is key. As I'm Malaysian and grew up on a lot of the broths that come out of that region, I'm used to layering and adjusting broths and soups to taste.

I think a lot of soups tend to come out bland straight out of the cookbooks. Don't be afraid to doctor or add, in small bits, to build up depth. With soups/broths, sometimes a longer cooking period (what I think of as steeping, to make a tea analogy) will just give you more that depth.

With butternut squash, get a good roasting period in the oven to impart that caramelized flavour — and depending on how you do it, heavy cream or creme fraiche to give it added richness.

Definitely agree with Naz on the roasting thing, particularly for something like butternut squash. Sometimes I'll throw in a handful of smashed garlic cloves with the veggies, even if the garlic doesn't go in the soup, for a hint of flavor.

Be careful with your salt, as the soup reduces it will get saltier. Add a little at a time as you go, it's easy to add, basically impossible to take away.

These are awesome tips, thank you. I would have never thought to roast the squash first, but it makes sense to introduce caramelized flavour.

Jim Ray, I'm a vegetarian (should have mentioned that initially) so unfortunately the chicken stock is out of the picture. I'll check to see if Bi-Rite offers vegetable stalk.

Ah! Veggie stock is pretty simple and you can whip some up while the squash is roasting. Most recipes call for celery, I tend to sub in leeks instead. Also, Better Than Bouillon makes a vegetarian "no chicken" base: superiortouch.com

I know you said butternut, but let me offer up delicata as an alternative. That's my current favorite winter squash. If you like butternut, then there's a good chance you'll like that too.

I'll third the roasting, and add that I'll usually brush the cut squash with olive oil before putting it in the oven.

Instead broth, I almost always use miso paste and dilute with water. Miso is pretty salty, so if you go with this choice, you probably don't want to add any regular salt, at least until the soup is nearly done (and then you salt to taste).

For creaminess, I will almost always use whipping cream. Anything else just dilutes the soup, and I'll achieve dilution with the broth (or water if using miso).

The one spice I'll almost always use for winter squash soup is cinnamon. Just a little; the goal isn't to have the soup taste like cinnamon but rather to be like the bass player to the lead guitar of the squash flavor. Other spices are more fungible. I happen to like sage and rosemary (get them fresh). Roasted garlic also works well.

If you want to use ground pepper (again depends on your tastes), then just for aesthetic reasons I'd go for white pepper powder instead of ground black pepper. The former will disappear into the result, whereas the latter will be visible as specks in the soup.

A butternut squash recipe I've been making for a few years now has taught me a few lessons (similar to those above). While I don't roast my squash, I have found that the ripeness really will change the character of the soup.

Ripeness adds more sweetness obviously. But greener squash may require some brown sugar.

I get the creaminess without actual cream... Just sneak in a couple small Yukon Gold potatoes and use olive oil. And a blender.

The "signature" heat / flavors come from fresh ginger which I shred and sautee slightly, and a nice proportion of cumin and cinnamon.

The soup will intensify its flavor over several days!

I derived this one from an New York Times recipe.

I'd add a little cilantro/coriander as oomph to the soup. I've found that slow-roasting the butternut squash can make it creamier. Adding a touch of ginger can make it zing a bit better than otherwise, and it complements the cilantro well.

It's still Summer in my neck of the woods... so I can only think cold soup at this point! Chilled squash soup is fantastic & easy + this one is spicy! Roast your favorite squash seasoned with olive oil, cumin, salt & pepper (butternut & acorn work well)
saute 1/2ish of an onion. Add 2-3 cloves garlic. Add a cup or so veggie broth, cup or so of coconut milk (trust me here!) 2 tsp red curry paste and the squash you just roasted and chopped. Bring to boil then turn down & simmer 15 minutes. Pour into blender and add a handful of fresh cilantro, blend well. Chill & serve. optional garnish: sesame seeds, green onions maybe even sour cream or yogurt dollop. I don't generally like cold soup - but this one is a favorite