Roasted Butternut Squash and Cauliflower Soup

Make sure to enter the 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life giveaway from Money Saving Mom. It ends today!!

Last week was our final CSA pick-up for the season, so I had some autumn veggies to use up (and I don't usually like cauliflower!). I took a little bit of inspiration from this recipe by Soup Addict, but I'm happy to report that my many edits turned out excellent!

So, here it is, my Roasted Butternut Squash and Cauliflower soup (with a few secret ingredients) :)
The Recipe:
1 medium size butternut squash, peeled and cubed
1/2 large cauliflower head, or one medium, cut into florets
olive oil
salt and pepper
onion
garlic
2 quarts chicken stock
1/2 cup-1 cup apple cider
3 or 4 slices good quality sandwich bread, crusts removed and cubed
blender (immersion or counter)
optional bread and feta cheese for toppings

Preheat oven to 400. Fill a large baking sheet with the cut up squash and cauliflower. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for 30 minutes, flip and test, bake for an additional 20-30 minutes.

While the veggies are roasting, saute onion and garlic in a large stock pot. Add chicken stock and apple cider. Transfer cooked veggies to stock pot and let simmer for 10-30 minutes (however much time you have!).
Add cubed bread and allow to soak into the broth. Then use an immersion blender (or work in batches in a counter blender) to puree as finely as desired. This creates a dense, textured, and uniform soup that is hearty and tastes like autumn!

Serve topped with additional cubes of bread and feta cheese, if desired. I loved how rich and thick this turned out. The squash and cauliflower flavors melded together perfectly, and the hint of apple cider was really nice. I'm totally not a cauliflower person and my husband doesn't usually do squash, but we thought this was amazing. Enjoy!